


No More A Milletian P2: Melancholic Nostalgia

by Silently_Writing



Series: No More A Milletian - Mabinogi Fanfic [2]
Category: Mabinogi (Video Game)
Genre: Eskeir still have triggers, Fighting Scenes still my weakness, Happened during G25 but there's really no mention about G25 - Just some signs, Lotsa OOC characters again maybe?, Mabinogi AU, Prepare for some drama in some chapters-, Still a bit of a messy plot but I'm trying-, Still dunno what archive warning to use halp-, There might still be some grammar errors, There might still be some mention of hurt/trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-16
Updated: 2021-02-28
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:13:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 24,419
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28782528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Silently_Writing/pseuds/Silently_Writing
Summary: Before you read this, make sure you've finished reading No More A Milletian P1: The Lost One!This is the second part of my series, 'No More A Milletian', where Eskeir tries his best to earn the forgiveness and trust of his old friends. Starting from Tir Chonaill, he accepted any kind of odd jobs from those who still doubt him while some just wants to see him working hard to earn their trust back.The past of Eskeir's mother, Myan Takahashi, will also be revealed bit by bit at every end of each chapters. It only covers her time in Erinn but there might also be some flashbacks about her life back in her original world.
Series: No More A Milletian - Mabinogi Fanfic [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2091513





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> OH YEA-- I dunno how to play chess anymore so I dunno if what I’m explaining here is correct-- hahaha--- *flees*
> 
> Enjoy!!

As soon as Eskeir wakes up, he hurriedly prepared himself and ran towards the Emain Macha Castle Gate to meet up with Aodhan. He planned to go to Tir Chonaill today. Weeks ago, the Queen of Tara gave him a mission for 3 years and that is to reveal to them that he is the missing milletian, Hitsuji Kuro who now goes by the name Eskeir. The goal in his mission is to try earning their forgiveness and trust back. It’s going to be a tough road because he already knows that there are few people who might not give their forgiveness. 

After locking his house, he went straight to Aodhan passing by his brother. He greeted Luis first before continuing to Aodhan. Upon arrival, he saw him talking to Thomas and some other knights. He also noticed the sudden coldness in the air but he just ignored it, thinking that it might just be the change in season.

“Oh Eskeir, good morning. Are you on your way to Tir Chonaill?” Aodhan asked, smiling.

Eskeir nodded, rubbing his arms. He stared at the air as his breath turned white. Has it been this cold in Emain Macha?

“You noticed it too? It’s starting to get colder even when December just passed.” Thomas said, pretending to shiver a bit.

Eskeir chuckles, “A late welcome, I guess. Well, I better be on my way.” he told them, earning nods from the two.

He hopped on the horse that Aodhan lent and made his way out of Emain Macha. As soon as he got out of the city, the cold faded. He looked back, staring at Emain Macha.

_What’s wrong~?_

Eskeir shakes his head, “Nothing...” he mumbled.

He carefully passes by Osna Sail, and swings his sword when some wolves run to him. It was tough to fight while riding a horse but he was able to leave Osna Sail without a scratch. Morfydrianas materializes beside him, floating. She made herself visible only to Eskeir.

“Are you not entering Dunbarton?” Morfydrianas asked.

“Nope… Dunbarton is a place where most milletians are gathering. I’ll be doomed if some of them recognizes me.” Eskeir told him as he led his horse towards Dugald Aisle, staying away from the town.

“Aren’t you also going to ask for their forgiveness?” Morfydrianas asked but Eskeir just stayed quiet. Then an idea formed in her mind, “Oh! Could it be… Your only friends are those three from before?”

Eskeir only shrinks down, pouting and making the female alchemist laugh. Morfydrianas playfully smacks his back, “It’s okay! It’s okay! At least you earned those three’s forgiveness, hm?”

He only gave out a sigh before nodding, “My focus right now aren’t milletians. I doubt they want to see me too after I left them alone to face the Order. I have to go to Duncan and help around if needed, then visit Ibbie in bangor… I wonder what Ibbie will think when she realized that one of the knights who went there before was actually the person who she’s been waiting for… Aah… I think I have to prepare some cake too...” Eskeir mumbled and continued to do so until they reached Dugald Aisle.

Morfydrianas just watched him as he continued to mumble to himself, a bit amused. They passed by the area without any problem except when Tracy saw Eskeir talking to himself, confused. Eskeir just smiled at him in embarrassment before making his horse run.

“And we’re finally here...” Eskeir said as they arrived at Tir Chonaill. He gave out a long sigh as they passed by the river. “What a nostalgic feeling… I was sent to this town when I first arrived in Erinn after meeting up with Lorna and Pan.” he mumbled as he carefully went down from his horse.

He looked around and saw the tree near the fields. He walked his horse towards the tree, “Alright, stay here. Don’t go anywhere.” he told him, Morfydrianas grins as she floats behind the boy.

“Can it understand you~?” she asked, Eskeir blushed a bit.

“W-Well it’s a trained horse! I’m sure it can somehow understand me… If it’s my horse when I was still a milletian, it would surely obey.” Eskeir mumbled, Morfydrianas simply laughed.

“You’re so cute when embarrassed, my son~” Morfydrianas said as she ruffled his hair.

Eskeir frowns a bit, “Shut up and let’s go to Duncan.” he said, walking away.

Morfydrianas follows him, still smirking, “So how are you going to introduce yourself? ‘Hello there! It’s me, the long lost milletian Hitsuji Kuro who now goes by the name Eskeir! I’m sorry for suddenly leaving but I’m here now to help on stuff!’ like that?” she teased.

“I have a better idea.” Eskeir mumbled.

Eskeir walked inside the town, greeting back when the others did. The people in Tir Chonaill are as friendly as the first time he got there. When he finally saw Duncan on his usual spot, he took a deep breath before approaching. Noticing that he’s no longer alone, Duncan turns to face Eskeir.

The elder simply strokes his beard while staring at the young man’s heterochromia eyes as if trying to remember where he last saw that kind of eyes. He recognizes Eskeir’s Emain Macha armor and smiles, “Good morning, what does a young knight from Emain Macha need in Tir Chonaill?” he asked with his usual gentle voice.

Eskeir smiled, “Good morning… I know this might sound strange but would you like to play a small game of chess?” he asked. 

Morfydrianas seems confused when he mentions that but Duncan’s eyes widen a bit, remembering a memory from long ago.

_“Hey Gramps! Let’s play another game of chess!” a black haired heterochromia milletian told Duncan while grinning._

_‘Ah… No wonder those eyes look familiar but I can’t be sure if it’s really him.’_ Duncan smiled, “Sure. I doubt young milletians will need my help this early so I can spare some time for one game.” he told him.

Eskeir followed Duncan inside his house and gestured to the young boy to sit. He walked to a cabinet and brought out the board of chess. Eskeir watched as the elder placed the chessboard on the table in front of him and took out the pieces. Eskeir decided to arrange the chessboard himself.

“Do you also like to have some tea?” Duncan asked, “Drinking some may help as we play the game.”

Eskeir smiled as he nodded. Duncan prepared some tea and placed it on the nearby table. Morfydrianas simply floated on top of them, watching as they started the game.

“What will you get by playing a game of chess, Eskeir?” Morfydrianas asked.

The young boy simply smiled, _‘Whenever I have some free time, I usually play chess with him… When I got too busy helping the Goddess, I decided to give the chessboard and the chess pieces in case he wants to play with other people.’_

Morfydrianas just hums, watching as they move each of their pieces. 

“...is there something you want to talk about?” Duncan suddenly asked, making Eskeir halt his movement.

When he looked at the elder, only a warm smiling face greeted him.

 _‘It’s time...’_ Eskeir said to himself, putting his rook piece down. “I was… given a task.”

“Mm...” Duncan just nodded as he made his move before drinking his tea.

“...There are these people who I have to earn forgiveness from. You know… I may look young but I did a lot of bad things.” Eskeir told him, looking at his pieces while thinking which one to move. “...The person who gave me this task also told me that I should do anything that they request me to do for me to earn their forgiveness and trust back.” he moves his knight piece, taking one of Duncan’s pawns.

“And I’m one of those people?” Duncan asked, observing the current arrangement of the pieces before making a move.

Eskeir nodded as he watched Duncan take two of his pawns and a rook in a combo. He tried to focus on the game but he can feel his nervousness slowly crawling in. He felt a pat on his shoulder, remembering that Morfydrianas is still there watching their game.

“..Yes… By now you probably know who I am, right gramps?” Eskeir asked.

A smile forms in Duncan’s face, “ Yes… It’s been a while, Hitsuji...”

“Y-yeah...” Eskeir stuttered, it’s been awhile since he heard someone call him by that name again excluding the time when Morfydrianas talked about it earlier. 

Aodhan and the others in Emain Macha are careful not to call him by that name but he forgives Duncan since he has no idea with things that have been happening to him. He moves a piece from his side, “..I changed my name to Eskeir now...”

Duncan stared at him in wonder but just shook off his lingering question, “Alright then, Eskeir.”

After watching Duncan’s next move, Eskeir asked, “Is it… going to be hard to earn your forgiveness and trust back?”

Duncan only chuckled, making Eskeir look at him in confusion. “I’ve forgiven you for a long time now, Eskeir. I still trust you but with the rumors about you circling around, it would be hard for others to trust you back.” he told him before drinking again.

“Oh…” was the only thing that the young boy was able to say.

Duncan chuckles, “I knew something was wrong when you gave the chessboard to me. It also surprised me when the rumor about your disappearance began to appear in Tir Chonaill. Some even said that you were a traitor...”

“..Then why?”

“I know you’re not that kind of person, Eskeir. You wouldn’t betray those who are around you but you’re also lacking when it comes to trusting them. You keep on bottling everything inside until it explodes. I knew something was wrong and I regretted not stopping you from leaving… But now that you’re here, you probably realized it already.” Duncan told him, smiling.

“Wow, this gramps is amazing. He reads you like an open book~” Morfydrianas said, whistling.

Eskeir chuckles a bit, scratching his head “Seriously gramps… Will you give me a day without making me cry?” he mumbled, “Gosh, I just cried before and now here I am again… What’s with me?”

Duncan simply smiled and pats his head, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry.” he mumbled, chuckling, “Seems like we can’t finish the game… Do you like to visit others now?” he asked, Eskeir nods as he wipes his tears.

Eskeir glanced at his untouched tea and decided to drink it before standing and bowing to Duncan, “Thank you for listening to me… Thank you for your forgiveness and for trusting me still… I promise I’ll gain everyone’s trust back.” he told him with determination.

Duncan nods and watches as he leaves the house. He stares at the unfinished game of chess, not noticing that a figure of a woman forms on the chair where Eskeir was sitting before.

“How about we continue the game, Gramps?” Morfydrianas asked, staring at the game in interest.

Duncan blinked his eyes, staring at her “Who are you?” he asked, in guard.

Morfydrianas smirks at him, “No need to feel like that, sheesh. Let’s just say I’m a friend of Eskeir. I’ve been accompanying him for a long time now and… you might not remember but I’ve been here before too.”

“...I’m afraid that I can’t remember but if you are a friend of Eskeir, then it’s fine.” Duncan said, still staring at how mysterious the woman looked like but didn’t question it any further. “Let’s continue the game then.”

Eskeir wanders around the square, thinking who to visit first. He decided to go to Caitin first, the one managing the Grocery Store. When he entered, he saw her putting some bread on the display counter. She noticed him and smiles sweetly.

“Hello~ We have fresh bread today~” Caitin told him, Eskeir nodded looking at the bread on display.

“Great, I’ll have two please.” Eskeir said.

Caitin nodded and takes a paper bag, putting two breads on it “Here you go, it’s 120 golds~”

“Thank you.” Eskeir said, taking the paper bag and sitting on the nearby bench to eat. _‘Morfydrianas, can you actually eat?’_

_I can but it’s not really necessary for me~ I could eat what you give though so what do we have?_

_‘Bread. Caitin’s baking is really good. Where are you anyway? I can’t feel you around or inside my mind.’_ Eskeir told her, taking a big bite from his bread.

_Oh! I’m finishing the chess with Duncan~_

Eskeir suddenly coughed after hearing that. Caitin heard him coughing and grabbed a glass of water, giving it to him.

“A-Are you okay?” Caitin asked, worried.

Eskeir quickly drank the water and thanked her, “Y-Yeah, yeah. Thank you, the bread is really good and I ate too much.” he told her, laughing a bit.

Caitin giggled, “Really? Thank you~ But eat carefully, you might choke yourself!” she said before walking back behind the counter to watch the other breads that she’s baking.

 _‘You showed yourself to Gramps?!’_ Eskeir asked in surprise.

_Yup! Don’t worry, I didn’t force him~ I know you’ll get mad if I did so I just told him that I’m a friend of yours~_

Eskeir finishes his bread then asks, _‘Not as my mother?’_

_Aww~ Do you want me to tell him that instead?_

Eskeir covers his face, _‘Ugh, stop teasing me...’_

_No :3_

Eskeir sighs before watching Caitin, _‘Now how do I start this… I could go for the usual greeting by saying that I’m Hitsuji Kuro but she might not believe me.’_

_With your unusual eyes, I think it’s possible. When we first met Duncan, he noticed your heterochromia eyes first._

_‘Caitin didn’t react though… Plus I’m not the only person with heterochromia eyes. Some milletians have it too.’_ he told Morfydrianas as he ponders.

_Yours are natural while theirs are not, right?_

Eskeir scratches his head, _‘Yeah, I guess...’_ he carefully folded the opening of the paper bag and put it inside his bag. He stood up and went to the counter again. “Can I get another glass of water?” he asked, putting the empty glass down.

Caitin smiles and pours it with some water.

“...So… Have there been rumors about the missing milletian here?” Eskeir asked.

“Oh, do you mean Hitsuji Kuro? Yeah, there are few rumors about him and most are bad ones.” Caitin told him.

Eskeir stares at the glass of water, “What do you think of it?”

Caitin ponders a bit, “Well, in my opinion he seems to be a bit of a coward.”

“Oh.”

“Leaving his friends like that and even betraying them… I didn’t know there were milletians like that.” Caitin said with a sigh then looked away, “But it’s strange...”

Eskeir raises an eyebrow, “What do you mean strange?”

“Well you see, a few weeks ago a milletian bard played a song in the square. It seems to be about Hitsuji Kuro and the contents seem to tell that what we think of him might not be true and that those are just lies. That we must not believe in those rumors or to judge without knowing what really happened because every action has their own reasons.” Caitin told him, smiling a bit. “Actually, after hearing that… The doubt I have about him suddenly vanished.”

Eskeir blinks his eyes in confusion and begins to ponder, _‘A milletian bard? It can’t be mother so…’_ his eyes widened, _‘Could it be Agioma?’_

He takes a deep breath and asks, “If… If that milletian, Hitsuji Kuro, comes back here… What are you going to do?” he asked, fidgeting a bit with his hand.

Caitin hums and ‘smiles’, “I’ll give him a looooong lecture and scolding!”

Eskeir’s face pales, _‘I-Is Caitin always this scary?’_

_Owww I wanna see but our game isn’t done yet! Gramps is so good at chess!!_

“Ah, why have you been asking if I may ask?” Caitin asked, looking at him confused.

“I-I wonder...” Eskeir mumbles, looking away. _‘Now I’m scared to say that I’m that milletian...’_

“Ah!” Caitin suddenly exclaimed, making Eskeir look back at her, “Now that I noticed it… You have the very same heterochromia eyes as him!” she said with a gasp.

“E-Err...”

Caitin’s eyes widens, “Don’t tell me… You’re...”

Eskeir immediately turns around, “A-Ah! I almost forgot about my friend outside, she might be waiting already!” he stuttered, opening the door but before he could leave, Caitin grabbed his shoulder with a grin.

“Hitsuji Kuro~ Can we have a little chat~?” Caitin asked, still grinning.

A feminine yell was heard across the town. Duncan was chuckling as Morfydrianas grumbled.

“Just how good are you, gramps?!” Morfydrianas asked.

“I just learned from the best.” Duncan told her as he drank his last cup of tea.

Morfydrianas sighs, “Good game, good game~” she said grinning. “Well then, I’ll be going to Eskeir now~ See you again, gramps~” she told him before disappearing.

~To be continued...

**::.FIRST SONG.::**

_Note: Every end of each chapters, there will be this short story telling Myan’s experience in Erinn. It’s only a short one but enjoy!_

_It happened in a flash, I crossed the street and suddenly a different scenery welcomed me. I was inside some kind of dark bricked room and I was alone. I walked deeper, passing through each room until I reached a big door. I pushed the door open, making a small creaking sound and I carefully went inside. In the middle of the room displayed a certain instrument. It seems to be a mandolin but the design is a bit extravagant. There were unfamiliar letters on the display stone/tablet, I stared so long that the words began to swirl and change into something I can understand._

_“Demonic Gloomy Sunday”_

_Heh, even the name is strange but it fits it. As soon as I took hold of the mandolin, the room began to shake. I shivered as soon as I heard some kind of monstrous growling. Soon huge monsters with red eyes appeared, slowly approaching me. I don’t know why but I suddenly thought of playing the mandolin and when I did, a strange wave emitted from me making the monsters whimper._

_“Ahh… You’re afraid of this?”_

_I felt a smirk on my face as I continued to play a melody. Each wave brings pain to the monsters and it makes me feel… pleased._

_Soon, I’m able to leave the ruins. Aah~ It wouldn’t be bad to try seeing what this world is like…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I started writing this especially on the part where Eskeir buys some bread from Caitin, my mind went like ‘Wait… That seems expensive for two regular breads!’ but I went ahead anyway lol On the next chapter, there’s gonna be another price amount that’s going to be… quite shocking XD


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

While Caitin is busy doing some scolding to Eskeir who was just kneeling down on the floor, sulking. Malcolm sorth of heard the feminine yell coming from her shop so he decided to visit.

“Hey Caitin, I heard someone-” Malcolm stops, seeing the situation. “Uh… What’s happening?” he asked, smiling a bit.

Caitin smiles at Malcolm, “Ow... Did we bother you? I’m sorry but we’re fine~ I’m just scolding a certain ex-milletian right here.” she said, staring at Eskeir before shaking her head.

Malcolm looks at Eskeir but since he can’t see his face, he looks back at Caitin and asks, “Who?”

Caitin ‘smiles’ at Eskeir again, making the poor boy flinch “Why don’t you properly introduce yourself, hm?”

“O-Okay okay!” Eskeir said, standing up and turning around to face Malcolm.

As usual his pair of heterochromia eyes surprised Malcolm, “I’m Eskeir.” then he felt Caitin’s smile from behind, “B-but… I’m also known as Hitsuji Kuro...”

Malcolm’s eyes widens, “Hitsuji? Really? You?” he asked in disbelief. The young boy just nodded.

Caitin normally smiles as she pats Eskeir’s head, “I was surprised myself! If he didn’t ask me about Hitsuji then I wouldn’t also know that it’s really him!” she told Malcolm who just nodded in return.

“...Hitsuji..” Malcolm said, staring at him.

Eskeir looks at him nervously, “Y-Yeah?”

He smiles, “You’re so small and cute~” he suddenly said.

“W-Wha-- I’m not!” Eskeir exclaimed.

“Oh! Now that you mentioned it! He’s smaller than usual~” Caitin said, trying to measure Eskeir’s height with her hand.

Malcolm chuckles, “Anyway this… is a surprise… Does Duncan know?” he asked.

Eskeir nodded, “I went to him first...” he told him.

“So… After disappearing for so long, why did you decide to appear now?” Malcolm asked, looking away for a bit.

Eskeir sighs and tells them the reason why he suddenly disappeared and about his mission or task to earn everyone’s forgiveness and trust back. “I’ll even do anything to have your trust back… Anything.” he told them, staring at his hands.

Caitin and Malcolm look at each other before smiling.

“It would take time for us to forgive you but… If you work hard with the job we’ll give you, then we’ll give you a second chance.” Caitin told him.

“But before we could decide on this… Isnt it better to discuss this with everyone else?” Malcolm asked, then looks at Eskeir, “What do you think?”

Eskeir shrugs, “That seems easier than to try going to them one by one.” 

“And easier than trying to beat around the bush~ Right, Eskeir?” Caitin said with a smile, the young boy simply nodded. She giggled, ruffling his hair. “Then go and inform Duncan about it~” she said, pushing Eskeir out of the shop.

“O-Okay okay! No need to push! Sheesh...” Eskeir mumbled before heading back to Duncan.

When Eskeir met up with Duncan again, he told him about what Malcolm had suggested. Duncan agreed and with the help of Caitin and Malcolm, they notified everyone in Tir Chonaill about the meeting that’s going to be held in the square during the afternoon. While it’s still early, Caitin requested Eskeir to make 3 sacks of wheat flour so now he’s at the fields harvesting some wheat.

“Phew...” Eskeir stares at the stacks of wheat he just harvested.

Morfydrianas materializes and stares at the wheats, “Even as a mortal, you remembered how to properly cut the wheats~”

“It’s all in my memory… It’s not as easy as when I was a milletian though… I have to be careful not to have dried wheat mixed in.” he told her, checking each straws of wheat.

Morfydrianas just nods, “I’ll be cheering~ Go go~”

Eskeir grumbled, “Can’t you at least help me?” he asked.

“Unlike you, I have no experience in harvesting~ So no I can’t unless you want some unprofessional result of harvesting~” Morfydrianas told him, the young boy just frowns.

30 minutes later, Eskeir harvested a good amount of wheat to turn into wheat flour so he headed to Alissa. Morfydrianas made herself only visible to Eskeir.

“Hello big brother! Here to turn wheat into flour? That’s a lot!” Alissa told him, staring at the stack of wheats.

_Eskeir’s eyes widens a bit at the sudden memory that he remembered, “Big brother Kuro!!” a younger child exclaimed with a big smile painted on her face._

Eskeir just smiles at the memory, “Miss Caitin needs 3 bags of wheat flour so I harvested a lot. How much do I need to pay for the mill?” he asked.

“Let’s see… I usually ask for 450 golds for 5 minutes but hmm… Making 3 bags of wheat flour is going to be as long as an hour or two unless we have some help from a milletian.” Alissa told him, Eskeir just nodded. Suddenly she gasps, seeing a young milletian passing by, “Hey! You!” she called out, the young milletian turned to them.

“M-Me?” he asked, pointing at himself.

“Yup! Can you already make some wheat flour?” Alissa asked as the young milletian walked towards them.

He nodded, “I can make some… Do you need some help?” he asked.

“Yeah! We need to do 3 wheat flours and I’m pretty sure that Caitin needs them as soon as possible. Don’t worry, big brother here can pay!” Alissa said, pointing at Eskeir who was just staring at the young milletian as he remembers his young milletian days. “Big bro?” she called out, snapping Eskeir out of his daydream.

“A-Ah yeah! Leave the payment to me.” Eskeir told the young milletian.

The young milletian nodded with a smile, “Alright then!”

Eskeir gives Alissa the golds then the young milletian takes the stacks of wheat from him and starts making some flour. Morfydrianas hovers around the young milletian who shivered in return.

“Woah~ It seems faster if a milletian does it~ How mysterious~ I wonder how~ Nee, nee~ Do you know why, Eskeir?” Morfydrianas asked, watching the mill in curiosity.

Eskeir simply shrugs as he watches. In just 5 minutes, the wheat flour was done.

“Here.” Eskeir said, giving the young milletian some golds who looked at him in confusion. “For labor help. Thanks~” he said, ruffling the young milletian’s head.

The young milletian chuckled in return and smiled, “Gee, thanks!” he said. “I’ll be off then, see ya!” he said before leaving.

Alissa and Eskeir just waved then Eskeir carried the three bags. He bid goodbye to Alissa before heading to the Grocery Shop.

“Wow that was fast! Thanks, Eskeir!” Caitin said as she gestures to him to place the 3 sacks behind the counter.

Eskeir have told Caitin and Malcolm about his name too and both of them quickly understood it and apologized that they keep calling him that before. Eskeir forgave them and after that, they have been calling him ‘Eskeir’.

“We’re lucky to find a milletian so the process was faster than usual.” Eskeir told her, she nodded.

“So now that you’re a mortal, you can’t do milletian stuff now?” she asked.

Eskeir hums, “I can still do some tricks but it’s risky. Though… There are some skills from when I was a milletian that I still have, like music.” he told her and this caught Caitin’s interest.

“Oh! Is that why you have a lute? Can you play something~?” Caitin asked, her eyes sparkling in excitement.

“Ooooh~ I wanna hear some too~ It’s been awhile since you last played your lute!” Morfydrianas exclaimed.

Eskeir sighs and takes his lute from his back, “Alright then, one music will do right?” he asked, Caitin nodded.

Eskeir started playing and the two listened quietly.

_~Song: Candle by Cavetown~  
Nothing’s happened, you can calm down now  
You’re not a monster and no one’s going to shut you out  
Mum and Dad love you, you can come home now  
Of course your friends love you, what are you talking about_

Morfydrianas smiles at this, _‘I’m glad he’s slowly starting to accept even his past self… This is a big improvement.’_

_Have the strength to push away all the pain from yesterday  
Cause there’s nothing worth crying about  
Your heart is a candle and I won’t let you blow it out_

When Eskeir stopped playing, Caitin clapped her hands while Morfydrianas looked at him with a big grin.

“I didn’t know you could also sing~ It’s a really nice song, Eskeir~” Caitin told him, giggling.

“I wanna cuddle you right now~~” Morfydrianas said.

 _‘No!’_ Eskeir sighs and smiles at Caitin, “Thanks...”

Afternoon have come and Caitin invited Eskeir to eat lunch with her. After some hours, they headed to the square where the others were waiting. Duncan, Ferghus and Deian aren’t there yet. Malcolm sees them and waves so the two walk towards him.

“Oh! Big brother is here too!” Alissa said with a grin, Eskeir just smiles nervously.

Endelyon stares at Eskeir, “That armor, you’re a knight from Emain Macha? You look young.” she said with a gasp.

“Haha, I get that a lot.” Eskeir told her with a smile.

“Oh yea… How old are you, Eskeir?” Malcolm asked.

“I’m 13 years old this year.” I told them, remembering my birthday that was celebrated by the Queen in Rath Royal Castle before. *****

Endelyon nods, “So young...” she mumbled.

“I’ve heard about the Emain Macha’s child prodigy… Could it be you?” Trefor, who just approached them, asked.

Eskeir turns to him, then his head suddenly starts hurting. A flashback appeared before him as his surroundings began to darken a bit. A Trigger.

~~  
_Trefor stared at the roaming foxes around them with fear, “I-I’m scared. It’s t-those foxes...” he suddenly glanced at the milletian beside him, “N-no, no! Not you too, Hitsuji!!” he cried out._

_The milletian halted as his hand began to tremble. He couldn’t do anything but watch as his friend looked at him in fear._

_“A-ahhh! G-Get away from me!” Trefor exclaimed, “Aaaaahh!!!” he shoves the milletian away, shaking like a frightened child._

_“T-Trefor--” the milletian tried._

_He gasps seeing the fear in Trefor’s eyes,“G-go away! Never c-come back!” Trefor screamed at him, the milletian’s eyes widened._  
~~

Morfydrianas noticed that the young boy suddenly stayed quiet and when she realized that he’s currently under the effect of a trigger, she quickly called him out.

“Eskeir!”

The young boy’s eyes widens with a gasp, _‘I-I… I’m sorry, there was a sudden Trigger...’_ he tried calming down, trying not to catch the attention of the people around him.

“Was it because of this guy?” Morfydrianas asked as she hovered around Trefor, Eskeir simply nodded. She sighs, “Does your body hurt?”

Eskeir shakes his head, _‘...My head is just pounding a bit but I’m fine…’_

“Alright then.. Good thing no one noticed...” Morfydrianas said while looking around.

When Duncan, Deian and Ferghus arrived, Eskeir’s headache had faded. Only Caitin and Malcolm know the reason for the meeting so the others don't have any idea why Duncan suddenly gathered everyone in the square.

“Mhmm, seems like everyone is here.” Duncan said with a smile.

“Why did you ask everyone to gather here, Duncan? Did something happen?” Endelyon asked, the others looked at Duncan.

Duncan strokes his beard a bit before turning to Eskeir with a smile, “Well… A certain friend has finally returned and to save his energy to go to each of you individually… I’ve decided to gather everyone instead so we could talk about… some things related to this person as well.”

“Who is it, Duncan? Is this friend important for everyone to be needed here?” Lassar asked, Duncan chuckled and nodded at Eskeir.

Eskeir takes a deep breath before walking in front of Duncan, facing everyone.

“Oh… It’s about big brother? But it’s my first time to see him.” Alissa said.

“Alright Eskeir, don’t beat around the bush this time~” Caitin said with a ‘smile’.

Eskeir scratches his head, “H-Hey everyone.. So uhm, yes… I’m Eskeir and it’s nice to see you all again… I’m sure you guys don’t recognize me but… I’m actually Hitsuji Kuro too.” he told them and was met with silence.

They just looked at him with their mouths open, speechless. Caitin and Malcolm simply smiled while Duncan strokes his beard.

“A-Are you really Hitsuji?” Meven asked in surprise, Eskeir nodded.

“I’d prefer to be called Eskeir though so… I’ll really appreciate it if you won’t call me Hitsuji Kuro anymore.” Eskeir told them and then bows, “I came back to apologize for my sudden disappearance and for the trouble that I might have caused. I’m also here to earn everyone’s forgiveness and trust back… I’ll do anything to earn it, I can even do odd jobs.”

Nora looks at Caitin and Malcolm, “How come you two aren’t surprised?” she asked.

“Ah~ We already met him this morning. I was the first one who he talked to- well second if we’re counting Duncan.. Malcolm also came to my shop after that and then suggested to have a meeting instead of Eskeir going to each of you one by one.” Caitin told her.

Duncan pats Eskeir’s back telling him that it’s okay to stop bowing now so he did. The young boy just nervously observed everyone’s expression. As expected, some of them are looking at him with disbelief and these are Piaras, Ranald, Lassar and Deian. As for Ferghus and the others, they are still in shock but it’s obvious in their faces that they aren’t mad at him.

“Before anything else, I’d like to ask something.” Lassar said, Eskeir just nodded. “About the rumors… Is it true? Is it true that you abandoned your fellow milletians and even betrayed them?” she asked before glaring, “Because if it is, I wouldn’t want you stepping a foot in this town Eskeir.”

The others looks at her in surprise, Eskeir’s eyes widened a bit as well.

“H-Hey, isn’t that too much? We don’t even know his side of the story!” Ferghus told her.

Lassar crosses her arms, “That’s why I asked.”

Ranald nodded, “I agree with Lassar.”

“Do you need my help?” Morfydrianas asked, Eskeir shakes his head and sighs.

“It’s true that I somehow ended up abandoning them...” Eskeir told them, Lassar clicked her tongue as she looked away. “But I didn’t betray them! I have no motive of betraying anyone but that’s just how the others see it.”

Piaras sighs as he scratches the back of his head, “Can you explain it well? What actually happened?” he asked.

“...Let’s just say that I’ve been having a hard time trusting anyone, even myself. Y-You see, in my original world… I didn’t have a great life so when I appeared here in Erinn, I thought that I’ll be able to live better than before. I actually did until Cichol told me that the Goddess Morrighan has only been using me because she doesn’t want to get her own hands dirty.”

Lassar’s eyebrow twitches, “And you believed the God of the Fomors instead of the Goddess who saved you from your original world?” she asked with a small hint of sharpness in her tone.

Eskeir flinches before nodding, “...It’s true… Because Morrighan herself… tried to kill me. To end every milletians.” he told them, earning gasps.

“B-But why…?” Lassar asked in a whisper.

“She was afraid of us… But we tried our best to prove that we don’t mean harm and will never want to attain Godhood… That’s for my case, I don’t know what the other milletian thinks about becoming a God.” he told her. “Sure, it might have been solved… But the real reason why I left isn’t just that. As our enemies become stronger and stronger, the line of trust keeps getting thinner.” he smiles, “It’s funny when you mentioned that I betrayed them when.. It was the opposite… I was the one who got betrayed a lot. Not by my fellow milletians but by those people I trusted along my journey.”

Lassar covers her mouth, the atmosphere around them started to change and somehow the feeling of doubt and disbelief was gone.

“I got tired of it… So I told myself.. I don’t want to be a milletian anymore.” Eskeir told them.

“But how did you even become a mortal?” Ranald asked.

“One of our enemies, Morfydrianas and Talek… They were alchemists in Tara and when I visited their laboratory, I saw a spell that Morfydrianas made. It’s a spell where a milletian can turn mortal but of course it comes with a risk.” Eskeir told them with a small smile.

Lassar gasps, “Don’t tell me… you...”

Eskeir spread his arms and nodded, “Yeah… I used it. Now I’m a mortal who ages like you. I still have some of my milletian energy and it’s the one that’s keeping balance with my body since… This body is literally made from that magic. Just the whole use of it can break me unless some milletians are willing to donate some of their energy to refill the part I used.” he told them as he closed his eyes, “The risks of this spell… I just accepted them… The triggers, the pain… It seems enough to atone for all the wrong things I did in the past.”

There was silence until he felt a sudden hug. When he opened his eyes, the angry Lassar is now embracing him tightly.

“N-Not fair! I want to hug the poor big brother too!” Alissa said as she glomped them.

Duncan chuckled then glanced to the crowd when he saw Ranald walking away. He just sighed and watched as the others approached Eskeir, patting him or smacking his back.

Lassar let go of this embrace and wiped the small tears she had, “I-I’m still mad alright! As for the odd job… When you’re ready, I’ll give you mountains of work!” she told him.

“A-Alright..?” Eskeir stuttered, surprised at Lassar’s sudden change in attitude.

“I also need some help in my shop so come when you’re free!” Ferghus said with a grin, the young boy nodded.

Duncan just watched them as they began talking to Eskeir about the odd jobs, he chuckles as he strokes his beard.

“Seems like you’ll be staying here for awhile. Do you have a place to stay at? I can save a room for you~” Piaras told Eskeir with a smirk.

“T-Thanks, Piaras… I’ll be staying there then.” the young boy softly said.

Duncan dismissed them so they all went to their usual places. Eskeir and Morfydrianas follows Nora and Piaras to their inn. Eskeir went back to get his horse too and let it stay in front of the inn.

~To be continued...

**::.SECOND SONG.::**

_Not only humans are here. I saw Elves and huge people who call themselves as ‘Giants’ too. There’s also a lot of wild animals but like spiders, few aren’t aggressive. I learned something more about this Demonic Gloomy Sunday. It doesn’t only harm monsters but people too. How did I now? *giggles* I tried it on some of the passing people. I watched as they squirm in the ground, begging me to stop. My expression might have scared them as well because they fainted as soon as our eyes made contact. Aah~ They wouldn’t mind if I take some of their money, hm? I should go to the next town and buy better clothing to fit in with this world._

__

_“Did you hear? Did you hear? The milletians found some unconscious people somewhere in Dugald Aisle! They still have no clue what happened so some of them are investigating it.” a young man with a long face, narrow shoulders, and a pale complexion said._

_Milletians? Are they some sort of heroes in this world? Interesting…_

_“That’s why madam, you should be careful…” he told me as he sighed._

_I simply smiled, “Thank you for the information, I’ll be careful.”_

_Yes… I should be careful around these ‘Milletians’..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * - tbh I forgot if Eskeir turned 13 or 14- oofy- I’m sorry my son- TwT  
> And yes I know, Lassar suddenly had a quick mood change hahaha-- See?! I ooc some of them! orz
> 
> Also, yesss! I love Cavetown songs!! The songs also fit Eskeir so much TwT


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

Eskeir woke up early to help the people of Tir Chonaill. He asked Piaras first if he needed help on something so he asked Eskeir to gather 20 firewoods. If he’s still a milletian, it will be easy to gather firewood from trees but since he’s a mortal now… He has to go to the logging camp in Dugald Aisle because he surely doesn’t want a tree to suddenly fall to him.

_Since you’re going out, why not ask a few more people who might need help with gathering stuff outside Tir Chonaill~?_

Eskeir hums while putting some baskets on both sides of his horse, “I guess I should do that too...” he mumbled before visiting the others.

He asked around but no one else seemed to have the need to gather something outside. He asked Ferghus last and was requested to deliver some newly made lumber axe for Tracy.

“I’m counting on you, Eskeir!” Ferghus said as he smacks Eskeir’s back.

Eskeir flinched a bit, “Okay, okay. Are you sure these axes aren’t fragile?” he asked, grinning a bit.

“Yeah yeah.” Ferghus mumbled with a frown.

Eskeir chuckles as he places the lumber axes on the basket. He headed out of Tir Chonaill towards Dugald Aisle logging camp. He stopped his horse under the huge tree and hopped off. He takes the lumber axes and walks towards Tracy.

“Oh, it’s the boy who keeps on muttering~” Tracy said with a grin, Eskeir just smiled with a sweatdrop. He sees the lumber axes, “Oh, I know that craftsmanship~ Is it the ones I ordered from Ferghus?” Tracy asked.

Eskeir nodded, handing it to him “I was asked to deliver it to you. I’d also like to buy one if it’s alright, I have to gather some firewood.” he told him.

Tracy accepted the lumber axes but left one with Eskeir, “Then you can take that~ Since you helped with the delivery, I’ll just charge you 4000 golds for that lumber axe. Are we good?” he asked, winking.

Eskeir chuckles, “Yup, good.” he told him, handing the golds.

Eskeir headed to the chopping blocks and started chopping some firewoods. Even as a milletian, it’s tough to chop some firewood and now that he’s a mortal, it’s more harder and exhausting. Since swinging the lumber axe is like swinging a sword, he didn’t struggle that much. After gathering 10, he sat down panting.

“This is tiring...” Eskeir mumbles.

_It’s tough to be normal~_

“...Yeah… But this is life.” he said as he stretches his arms. “I need 10 more and we’re done.” he stares at the sky, “Time sure flies fast… It’s almost lunch isn’t it?”

_Yup~_

“I’ll probably cook, I’m sure Caitin has some ingredients that I can use in her shop… I also remember having an oven beside her shop too.” he mumbled. He claps his hands on his cheek before standing up, “Alright! Time to continue!”

After gathering the last 10, he headed back to Tir Chonaill. He delivered 20 firewoods to Piaras before going to Caitin’s Grocery Shop.

“Caitin, do you have any ingredients for sale?” Eskeir asked as he got inside. He stops, seeing Ranald.

Caitin was wrapping a large meat which was probably Ranald’s order. She smiles at Eskeir, “Oh Eskeir! Yup! I still have~ Which ingredients are you looking for?”

Ranald puts down his payment on the counter before walking towards the exit. He didn’t even greet or look at Eskeir.

Eskeir just sighed, walking closer to the counter “I’ll have some celery, onion, carrot, button mushroom and steamed rice if you have.” he told her.

“Oh~ Veggies~ What are you planning to make?” Caitin asked while placing the ingredients in a basket.

“Just a simple mushroom fried rice.” he told her then asked, “Can I also borrow some cooking tools?”

Caitin nods and lends him the cooking tools he needs then pays for the ingredients. With the tools and the basket of ingredients, he went outside to find the oven. He found it just beside the potato field and he started cooking. Morfydrianas materializes beside him as she watches him cook.

“So you remembered some recipes from when you were still a milletian?” Morfydrianas asked, Eskeir nodded.

“I wrote it down on the notebook I bought before. I’ve been writing down important stuff before I ended up forgetting them.” he told her, Morfydrianas just hums.

Morfydrianas grins, poking his cheek playfully, “Smart~”

“Uwaah! I can smell something delicious!” a childish voice said from behind the shop.

Eskeir looks at that direction and saw a familiar pink haired tanuki girl. She walks near Eskeir, staring at the food while drooling. Another person walks from behind the shop, it's a familiar black haired kitsune guy.

“Anju...” Haji said, sighing. When he saw Eskeir, his ears twitched “You… Have we met before? You smell familiar.”

“Oh~ Oh~ Who are these? Your friends?” Morfydrianas asked, floating around the two in interest.

Anju tilts her head, staring at Eskeir “Your eyes looks like Kuro’s!!” she said with a big smile.

Eskeir smiles back, “Hey Haji, Anju. It’s nice to see you two again.” he told them, patting Anju.

“It is Kuro!!” Anju exclaimed happily, giving Eskeir a tight hug.

Haji smiles, “No wonder you’re familiar but… You seem different than usual.” he told him.

“You two didn’t hear anything about me from the rumors?” he asked them, raising an eyebrow.

The two ninja looked at each other before grinning.

“We just ignored it. Knowing you, you wouldn’t do those things.” Haji told him.

Eskeir just laughed a bit, “Typical duo...” he mumbled, continuing his cooking. “You two had lunch yet?”

“Nope!” Anju quickly replied, still drooling. Haji just sighed at his companion’s behavior.

Eskeir chuckles, “We can eat together then. Good thing I made a lot.”

“Yaay! Kuro, you’re the best!” Anju exclaimed.

Eskeir stayed quiet for awhile before facing the two again, “Is it okay if you two call me Eskeir from now on?” he asked, Haji raises an eyebrow. Sighing, he told the two of them what happened to him.

Anju gasps, “S-So you’re no longer a milletian?!” she asked, face pales.

“No wonder you suddenly disappeared.” Haji mumbled. “But are you happy with how you’re living now?” he asked, Eskeir smiled as he nodded. 

“Yeah, I prefer living this way even though there’s some disadvantages.” Eskeir told them, putting some of the cooked Mushroom Fried Rice on two bowls that he asked Morfydrianas to get in secret.

“As long as you’re happy, I guess it’s fine~” Anju said, smiling. “We are still friends so if you need some help, just come to us! Right, Haji?”

The said ninja seems surprised at first before faking a cough, looking at Eskeir with one eye open, “Y-yeah.”

Eskeir smiles, “Thanks, I will.” he told them, handing the two bowls.

The two gladly took it and the three of them began to eat, talking about how the duo have been doing and why Eskeir is on Tir Chonaill.

“Oooh~ Now that I’m having a closer look, Haji also has heterochromia eyes~” Morfydrianas said, staring at Haji.

Eskeir nodded, _‘Yeah. He’s the first friend who told me that it’s fine to have these kinds of eyes and that we’re special that way...’_

Morfydrianas pouts, “It’s hard to see at first since his bangs are covering it.” she said, Eskeir chuckled.

“What what? Did I say something funny?” Anju asked, pouting.

Eskeir pats her, “Nah, I just remembered something whenever we hang out like this. You know, like how much of a tsundere Haji is.” he told her, making the tanuki girl laugh.

“Oi...” Haji frowned, Eskeir just laughed with Anju.

After finishing their meal, Eskeir visited Malcolm this time to ask if he needs help on something.

“Ah, you’re just in time! I need help delivering these clothes, it’s a lot and I really need help!” Malcolm told him, gesturing at the stacks of folded clothes by the table. It’s also tied up so it won't get mix up with the other clothes. “There are already name tags on each, can you deliver it? I will have to sew more clothes.” he said, sighing tiredly.

Eskeir smiles, “Sure.” he said, walking towards the table. “Woah this is a lot.”

“Yeah, haha! I’m counting on you! Thanks!”

Eskeir picks up each piece of clothing one by one, placing it on his horse’s baskets. He also cleaned the basket so it won't stain the clothes. He spent the whole afternoon going around the town to deliver the clothing before going back to the inn to take a rest.

“Being a mortal is tiring...” Eskeir mumbled as he planked down on the bed.

Morfydrianas giggles, “It’s just your first day of work, Kier~ You’ll get more tired for the next few days~” she told him.

Eskeir mumbles, “You’re calling me by that nickname again...”

“Hm? Don’t like it? How about I call you ‘my son’ from now on~?” Morfydrianas asked with a teasing tone.

Eskeir just hugged a pillow close to his face, grumbling. Morfydrianas just laughs. The next day while Eskeir was having his breakfast in the inn, Trefor suddenly came running inside.

“Is Eskeir here?!” Trefor asked. Piaras perked up while Eskeir turned around with a piece of meat on his mouth.

“What is it, Trefor? You suddenly ran in!” Nora asked as she walked inside with her arms crossed.

“I was scouting! And then! Spiders! In the graveyard! Lots of them!” Trefor told them while panting.

Piaras chuckles, “Couldn’t you take care of them? Eskeir is surely going to be busy today, doing odd jobs.” he told him.

Trefor sighs, “I tried killing the white spiders but they keep on multiplying! There’s also too many cobwebs! It isn’t like this yesterday!” he exclaimed.

_So noisy early in the morning…_

Eskeir finishes the piece of meat that he was eating before looking back at Trefor, “How many are there?”

“More than the usual number of white spiders!” Trefor told him.

“...If it’s really that lot then there must be an Ancient White Spider with them.” Eskeir told him.

Trefor walks closer as he asks, “An Ancient White Spider?”

“Yeah… I remember when I was still a milletian. There was this kind of monster when they stayed alive for a long time, they will transform into a stronger monster and we call them Ancient. They also drop good items too.” Eskeir told him but mumbling the last sentence. “With the number you encountered… There might be one or two of them at the graveyard.”

“Ah! No wonder! Can you help me, Eskeir?” Trefor asked.

Eskeir smiles, “Sure but at least let me finish my food.” he told him with a sigh.

“Oh! Alright then! I’ll wait near the Chief’s House!” Trefor said before leaving the inn.

Nora sighs as she goes back outside, Piaras returns to his usual work while Eskeir finishes his meal. After eating, he prepared himself and took both of his swords with him.

_So we’re hunting spiders this time?_

“Yup. If we can locate the Ancient ones we can finish it faster.” Eskeir mumbles as he walks his way towards the Chief’s House where Trefor was waiting.

_Woah, look at these cobwebs. There’s so many white spiders too!_

“You’re here! So how do we know which one is the Ancient White Spider?” Trefor asked.

“It’s bigger than the usual size.” Eskeir said then both of them tried looking from outside the graveyard, “...I see two.” 

“I saw one.” Trefor said at the same time then the two looked at each other before sighing, “Three Ancient White Spiders huh, seems tough.”

Eskeir unsheathes his two swords, “I can take care of them so can you take care of the regular ones?” he asked.

Trefor grins, “Sounds good! Leave it to me!”

The two nod at each other before Trefor heads in to attack the spiders while Eskeir finds his way towards the first Ancient White Spider. Morfydrianas materializes too to try helping.

“Others can’t hurt me but I can harm others~” Morfydrianas said, grinning.

“Just don't stay visible to others.” Eskeir mumbled, the alchemist just nodded.

Eskeir finally saw the first Ancient White Spider hiding behind the withered tree. He swung his swords, killing the white spiders on his way. He glanced at his side, seeing that Trefor handles the other white spiders without any problems. Eskeir felt a chill around him then the nearby white spiders were suddenly pushed away.

Morfydrianas frowns, “Focus on fighting, my son!” she said dramatically.

“Yeah yeah..” Eskeir mumbles as he makes his way towards the Ancient White Spider.

Trefor watches as Eskeir fights the first Ancient White Spider. He smiles a bit, _‘He’s still skillful even as a mortal.’_

When Eskeir killed the first Ancient White Spider, he proceeded to the next one. Morfydrianas checks the remains of the dead Ancient White Spider for any items it leaves before following Eskeir and killing those who tries to jump to him.

The battle lasted for an hour and the dead bodies of the monsters soon disintegrated into ashes. Trefor thanked Eskeir for helping before heading back to his usual area near the Alby Dungeon entrance. Eskeir headed back to the inn to rest and check what Morfydrianas have gathered.

“Let’s see… An Ancient Magic Powder, Trinity Staff and… a small diamond.” Eskeir mumbled, Morfydrianas sits on his bed and picks up the staff.

“Can you use magic?” Morfydrianas asked.

Eskeir nods, “Just the basics but when I was still a milletian, I could use most magic… But hmm, using a Trinity Staff is tough when using intermediate levels of magic. I need to cast a basic magic a lot of times of the same element to charge it before I can use an intermediate spell.” he told her.

“Ooooh~ Well you can either give this to Lassar or start training magic again.” she said, giving the staff back.

Eskeir examines the Trinity Staff before nodding, “I could try training again… I just don’t know if I have enough mana.” he mumbled.

Morfydrianas hums before suggesting, “Well, we could try to ask Lassar to check your mana when you’re free~ I'm too lazy to check it myself~”

“...Alright… I will probably ask her tomorrow. I still have to help Endelyon with gathering some stuff after I rest.” Eskeir said.

“Alrighty~ I’ll be staying inside your mind for awhile then~” Morfydrianas told him before disappearing.

When Eskeir got enough rest, he left to visit Endelyon to help her with some stuff that she will need. He spent his afternoon helping Endelyon and slept early because this day has been tiring for him.

~To be continued...

**::.THIRD SONG.::**

_I had this strangest dream. A voice telling me that it’s the reason why I’m in this world. This world is called Erinn and it brought me here for a reason._

_“This world lacks entertainment so I decided to grab someone from another world which is you. There are some people who are like you too and they are called Milletians.”_

_After hearing that, I asked if I am a Milletian._

_“No, you aren’t. But you have been blessed with the ominous power that the instrument holds. To be honest, I didn’t expect for you to appear in that area. I didn’t expect for such an instrument to be in that unknown ruin.”_

_It’s as if someone has expected my arrival. Even the unknown in my dream agrees._

_“Now that I contacted you, I have planned to give you another blessing.”_

_Even if it’s just a dream, I felt myself grin. I can feel something enveloping me, it’s not something visible but I can feel it._

_“I’ll grant you the power to control dreams and memories of not just your own but of others as well. Not only that it’s effective against humans, elves and giants but against monsters as well. The instrument shall also be the source of your power and so I’ve made a few modifications for it, making it more durable that no kind of weapons can break it apart.”_

_And to ask if there’s another source of power he wants me to have as if he knows what’s been lingering behind my mind… What a cunning entity._

_“A source outside the world? That is indeed a possibility but the transfer of the power would be slower than normal unless… that person becomes a milletian which is kind of doubtful. I’d be surprised if that does happen.”_

_But it did happen… Few years after my daughter was brought here too, HE also came as a milletian._

_Yes… Finally, the MAIN source of my power is in this world… Your fear, your doubt, your anxiety… I’ll take it all as the source._


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

Eskeir woke up early to eat and to go to the Magic School. Ranald was already up but ignored him so he just headed inside the classroom. As expected, Lassar is already working early in the morning. She saw Eskeir and smiled.

“Are you done with other’s work?” Lassar asked.

“Ah… Not yet, I haven’t visited Deian, Dilys, Bebhinn and Meven yet…” he looks around, scratching his cheek with a finger, “And Ranald is still ignoring me...” he told her.

Lassar softly giggled, “Ah Ranald… Just give him some time, soon he’ll ask for your help. Hmm… Now that you went to me this early in morning, do you need something else?” she asked, putting the book that she was reading down.

“Trefor and I fought some white spiders yesterday morning… There were 3 Ancient White Spiders and one of them dropped this staff.” Eskeir told her, showing the Trinity Staff. “So I was wondering if… You can check if my mana is good enough to learn magic, even the intermediate ones.”

Lassar takes the staff to examine it, “It’s in good condition even if it was dropped by an Ancient monster. Well, sure I can check your mana.” she said, putting the staff down on the table and sitting down on the stool. She gestures on the opposite stool and Eskeir sits on it, “Now hold both of my hands.” she told him so he did. “Close your eyes and relax. I’ll use my own mana to check yours.”

_I better stay here to see if her mana will somehow affect your body…_

_‘Alright.’_ Eskeir told Morfydrianas before closing his eyes.

Eskeir could feel a warm energy swirling from his hand then towards his body. Morfydrianas simply observed until it’s over. When Eskeir felt that Lassar had pulled back her hand, he opened his eyes and looked at Lassar who was smiling.

“You can learn magic with your mana, I think you are good with learning intermediate spells too.” Lassar told him.

Eskeir sighs in relief, “Thank you.”

Lassar crosses her arms, “But this doesn’t mean you should go straight learning intermediate spells. Like a milletian, you should still try to master the basic spells before learning the stronger ones.” she added.

Eskeir just chuckled, “Of course… Then Lassar, is it okay if you teach me?” he asked.

Lassar pondered about it a bit before grinning, “Sure, I can give you free lessons if you complete the works I’ll give to you.” she told him.

He sighs with a slight smile, “Of course.”

“Great! Here’s the work I need you to do then!” Lassar suddenly pushed a thin notebook to Eskeir’s face. There seems to be a pen tied to its spring too.

Eskeir takes it and browses it, “Err… All of these?” he asked, sweatdropping.

“What? Didn’t I tell you that I’ll give you mountains of work? Well, this is not really a mountain though~” Lassar told him with a grin.

“...This is still a lot of work.” he mumbled, Lassar suddenly frowned.

“Didn’t you say you need my forgiveness back?” Lassar asked, making Eskeir flinch before he nods, “Then if you’re able to finish all of that, I can forgive you.”

“Okay, okay...” Eskeir mumbled, checking each page while pouting.

Eskeir places the book and staff in his bag before standing up, “I’ll go help the others now then.” he told her before leaving.

Eskeir also planned to try talking with Ranald again but when he got out, the man wasn't in his usual spot. He sighed and just headed towards the Healer’s House to ask Dilys if she needed some help. While on his way, he saw Ranald talking to a milletian. The milletian seems to be a veteran. He hid behind a tree, listening to their conversation but he can only hear parts of their conversation.

“Alby… backdoor… Gold pass… Potion...” were the only words he heard.

_Is eavesdropping your hobby now~?_

He sighs, “It’s not my hobby... I’m just a bit curious… Plus they are blocking the way...” Eskeir mumbled as his mind tried to put all the words together, “Hm… They seem to be talking about the old room in Alby Dungeon… I wonder why though.”

_The milletian is probably asking for some advice?_

Eskeir watches the two as they part ways, he stays hidden not to be noticed. “The milletian looks experienced enough so I doubt...” he said before shrugging.

He continued his way towards the Healer’s House and when he got in, he heard someone coughing.

“Ughh… I can’t shear the sheeps if I’m like this...” Deian grumbled then coughed again.

Dilys sighs as she pats the kid, she notices Eskeir’s arrival and smiles at him “Good morning, Eskeir.” she greeted.

Eskeir nods a bit, “Good morning… Is Deian okay?” he asked which immediately got a response from the said kid.

“I’m okay-” he said before coughing again.

“You look sick...” Eskeir said as he walked closer to the two.

Deian grumbles again, “I-I know but… I have to shear the sheeps… It’s a good day to *cough* shear them today… uughhh...”

Dilys sighs as she prepares Deian’s medicine. She suddenly halted and looked at Eskeir, “Why don’t Eskeir do the shearing? You still remember how to, right?” she asked.

Deian looks at Eskeir too, expecting an answer. 

Eskeir scratches his head before nodding, “I still remember how to… If Deian’s alright with it then I can shear them today.” he told them.

Deian shows a big smile, “R-really?! Thank you! Thank you!!”

Eskeir pats him with a smile, “That’s the job I’ll do for today then. Take some good rest, Deian.” he told him, the kid nodded before going to one of the beds.

Dilys smiles, “I remember Deian having some shearing tools on the Pasture’s shed.” she told him.

“Alright, thank you. While I’m shearing, do you need me to gather anything?” Eskeir asked.

Dilys hums, “Hmm.. Well, after Deian shears today’s sheeps… He’s supposed to give me around 30 wools. If it’s alright with you, will you also do Deian’s wool delivery for others too?” she asked, Eskeir nods. “Alright, 30 for me and I remember Manus from Dunbarton asking for the same amount since their sheeps aren’t in the shearing season yet.”

 _‘So I have to go to Dunbarton too...’_ Eskeir said to himself, sighing. He smiles at Dilys, “Alright, I’ll deliver some to Manus too...”

Dilys smiles back and pats Eskeir’s head, “Everything is going to be fine… I’m sure they feel the same as us.” she told him, trying to encourage the nervous young man.

“Thanks… I guess I’ll go to Dunbarton later if I’m able to finish shearing early.” Eskeir said before heading out.

He went to get the basket from his horse before going to the pasture. When he arrived at the place, he took out the knife from the shed and stared at the sheeps. He frowned a bit seeing how the sheeps became wary of him.

_Aww~ This is going to be a tough challenge~_

Eskeir sighs and puts the knife on his waist, he takes his lute from his back and starts to play. One by one, the wariness of the sheeps disappeared and they all slowly approached Eskeir. He waited until they all fell asleep, good thing he remembered how to do those two skills without the help of his milletian energy. _(A/N: I know Enthralling and Lullaby doesn’t work on npc animals like sheeps but I just made it possible for this story qwq But I know we all want that to happen in-game too!!!)_

Morfydrianas materializes beside him, looking at the sheeps in awe, “Wow~ They all calmed down and fell asleep~ Nice trick, Kier~” she said.

Eskeir keeps his lute on his back again after playing before sitting down and readying his knife, “You know what, since you’re here… Why don’t you help too? I remember seeing another tool in the shed.” he told her with a grin.

Morfydrianas pouts a bit, “Wo~ow, you’re telling your mom to work? How sad~” she mumbles, then an idea appears in her mind. “I’ll help if you start calling me mom~ You keep calling me by my full name or Morfy.” she said, still pouting.

Eskeir just focused on the shearing, staying quiet.

“You keep calling the crazy woman as mother too and it’s getting annoying~” Morfydrianas sighed. “I’d be happy if you call me like that too~”

“...Is it really that important?” Eskeir asked.

Morfydrianas nods with a grin, “Of course it is since you’re literally under my care now!” she replied before sighing, “I miss the time when you were a kid… You’re so sweet and I remember being called as mom too~”

Eskeir reddens a bit, “T-That-- My mentality became a child’s s-so...” he stuttered.

“Come on, don’t be shy~ I know you’ve been thinking about it too~” Morfydrianas told him.

Eskeir stayed quiet again but stopped from his work. He sighs and mumbles something.

“What~?”

“M-Mom, can you help me.. Please?” Eskeir asked, his cheeks are still red from both shyness and embarrassment.

Morfydrianas smiles, “Alright, my son~~” she said before heading to the shed to get the extra tool to help Eskeir with the shearing.

With Morfydrianas’ help, they were able to finish the shearing until past lunch time. Eskeir placed some strap on the other basket so he can carry it like a backpack while carrying the other basket with both of his hands or arms.

“Oh my! This is fast~ Thank you, Eskeir.” Dilys said, picking up the wools “It’s also perfectly harvested~”

Eskeir smiles, “Good to know. I’ll head to Dunbarton then.” he told her, Dilys nodded and waves as he leaves the Healer’s House.

While on his way to his horse, Morfydrianas hovers in front of him “Are you also going to work in Dunbarton about the forgiveness thing?” she asked.

“...I’m still thinking about it… But since we’re heading there, I might as well do...” Eskeir said.

When they arrived at the inn where Nora was feeding his horse, he put the empty basket and the basket of wool back to the horse’s sides.

“Going outside?” Nora asked, patting the horse’s mane.

“Yeah, I have to deliver some wools to Manus in Dunbarton.” Eskeir told her, “Thanks for taking care of my horse, Nora.” he said before riding his horse.

Nora giggles, “No problem~ Be careful out there~”

Eskeir headed to Dunbarton and arrived in front of the gate after an hour. He took a breath before going inside and was surprised to see only a few of the milletians.

 _‘Strange… This place used to be crowded with milletians… Is it because of the sixth night?’_ Eskeir asked himself as he looked around. _‘...Mom… What will happen on the next nights?’_

Morfydrianas just stayed quiet.

 _‘...Of course, you can’t tell me.’_ Eskeir sighed then they arrived in front of Manus’ Healer’s House.

He left his horse outside while carrying the basket of wools on his back.

Manus turns to him when he went inside, he greets him with his usual smile “Welcome!”

“Hello, I’m here to deliver 30 wools from Tir Chonaill.” Eskeir told him.

“Oh the wools! Thank you! You can leave it over there.” Manus pointed on the basket behind the counter.

Eskeir carefully walked there and transferred the wools to that basket. While transferring, Manus was just watching him as if trying to remember if he knows the young man.

“Kid… Did we meet before? I can’t help but sense a feeling of familiarity.” Manus said, a hand on his chin.

Eskeir stands after transferring the wools and faces Manus with a smile, “You could say that… My name’s Eskeir but I’m also known as… Hitsuji Kuro.”

Manus’ eyes widens, “...The milletian who abandoned the others? Haha! You must be joking~ You can’t be him, you look like a kind person!” he exclaimed while laughing but Eskeir just stared at him quietly, somehow he expected this attitude from him. “...Wait, are you serious?”

Eskeir nods, “It seems like my reputation in this city is bad...” he mumbled, smiling a bit. “Well, as expected of the place where most of the milletians hang out.” he said before making his way out of the Healer's House.

“W-Wait, Hitsuji-” Manus tried to call but Eskeir had left. 

Eskeir places the empty basket back to the side of his horse before mounting. Morfydrianas hovers around him.

“You should have tried to stay… It seems the man wanted to tell you something.” Morfydrianas told him.

Eskeir just sighs, making his horse walk “Maybe next time… I-I’m… I’m not yet ready for Dunbarton...”

Morfydrianas just looked at him with a frown before disappearing. Eskeir’s travel was slow so both moons were already in the sky when he arrived in Tir Chonaill. Nora welcomed him back and he headed inside quickly, ignoring Piaras when he said that their dinner was ready. Confused, Piaras left the desk and walked up to where Eskeir was staying and saw him curled up in bed with his back facing Piaras.

“Did something happen?” Piaras asked, leaning on the wall.

Eskeir just shook his head.

Piaras just stared, “I heard from Nora earlier that you went to Dunbarton to deliver some wools...” he said and saw him flinch a bit. “...I guess the welcome isn’t that good?” he asked.

Eskeir just opened his eyes and his emerald eye looked at Piaras before closing again. Piaras sat on the edge of his bed, patting his head.

“I thought I was ready… but I’m wrong… I’m not yet ready for Dunbarton...” Eskeir softly said.

Piaras smiles softly, “ You’ll be able to face them soon like how you were able to face us. Just take your time, the Queen in Tara gave you 3 years after all… Maybe she knew that this kind of obstacle is going to happen.” he told him, gently caressing the young boy's hair. “You don’t have to hurry, just take your time.”

Eskeir shakes a bit before nodding slowly.

Piaras stood up, “Come down for dinner after you’ve calmed down.” he told him before leaving.

Around 20 minutes later, Eskeir went down to eat his meal. While eating, Nora was staring at him with a soft smile. He soon notices this and looks back.

“Something wrong?” Eskeir asked.

Nora shakes her head, “Nothing, I’m just glad that you seem to feel better than before~ It must be tough isn’t it?” she said, patting his head like a kid.

“...D-Don’t treat me like a kid...” Eskeir mumbles, frowning a bit before continuing to eat.

Nora giggles, “Sorry, sorry~ I can’t help it~ It’s like having a little brother.” she told him.

Piaras chuckles, “Eskeir is 13 right?” the asked boy nodded, “Yeah, now you’re younger than Nora.”

“That’s why he’s a little brother~” Nora said with a smile, Piaras simply chuckled.

While eating, Eskeir suddenly remembered Luis. _‘I wonder how brother Luis is doing...’_

_He’s probably picking up fallen golds from that rich man with forever holed pockets again~_

Eskeir tries to hold his laugh, _‘I’ve been wondering why he keeps his pockets like that.’_

_Don’t mind the man~ He’s rich anyway so he wouldn’t mind missing few golds~_

‘Yeah yeah… Hopefully brother Luis won't get in trouble though.’ Eskeir finishes his meal and drinks his water, “Thank you for the food, Piaras.”

Piaras smiles, “You’re welcome. Have a good rest.” he told Eskeir, taking the plate and washing it.

On the next day, Eskeir told Dilys and Deian about the successful delivery yesterday. Deian, who is still under recovery, really looked thankful. Since they didn’t ask him to do anything else, he checked them as complete before heading to the bank. Bebhinn really doesn’t have anything to ask him to do so they just had a little chat about Eskeir himself. After being satisfied, Bebhinn told him that she already forgave him ever since the meeting. Eskeir visited the Church’s Head Priest, Meven next.

“Ah you’re here.” Meven said with a warm smile. “I’ve thought of a work that you can do, well it’s not really a work but a suggestion.”

Eskeir raises an eyebrow, “A suggestion?”

Meven nods, facing the windows of the church “It’s your choice if you want to do it… I want you to come here for a week and try to reflect or to say your gratitude.” he said.

Eskeir nodded, thinking about it. Now that he remembered about it, ever since he lived in Erinn, he hasn't been praying that much. When he was still in their original world, he used to pray every night. Praying for his father to stop the abuse, praying for their family to be happy in the future, praying that someday… Someday he’ll be able to be successful in the future while having an amazing job to support his family but those prayers have long faded ever since he appeared in Erinn. This is the church of Lymilark, he’s not sure if it’s alright to pray to a different God.

“I’ll think about it...” Eskeir said.

Meven nods, “Alright. It’s okay.” he gently pats Eskeir’s head while smiling.

He left the church and realized he had visited everyone. Now the two remaining people who he needs forgiveness from are Lassar and Ranald. He has a feeling that Lassar has forgiven him somehow but he needs to finish the work given to him for her trust. As for Ranald… He’s a tough guy so he decided to try talking to him again after finishing the work that Lassar gave.

~To be continued...

**::.FOURTH SONG.::**

_It was a nightmare. An unfortunate event that I always questioned to that unknown God. I was in a camp where a lot of Bard stays. I was simply playing my mandolin, the Demonic Gloomy Sunday, when a familiar voice called out “Mama.” I’m not the only one who was surprised, even the Bards in the camp._

_How… How did my sweet angel get here?_

_“Mama!” I missed her gleeful laugher, her chubby cheeks._

_“How did your child get here, Miss Myan? She suddenly appeared out of nowhere!” one of the bards asked._

_That is indeed a good question, “Hana… My baby… How did you get here?”_

_“I-I don’t know… Hana was playing with big brother Hitsuji… Mama… Where are we? Where’s big brother and papa?”_

_I simply hugged her tight. My poor baby’s confused… Is this the work of the unknown God?_

_“Mama, I’m scared… Big brother is alone now with papa… He might hurt big brother..!”_

_That’s not my concern right now… This world can either be dangerous or be a paradise for my sweet child._

_“Big brother is going to be okay, Hana… He will be...”_

_It was sudden, the horses suddenly whined and the Bards quickly got alarmed._

_“Are we being attacked again?!” the black haired elf exclaimed, “Myan! Stay with your child! There are bandits!”_

_Indeed… A group of bandits suddenly appeared. The battle went on, I was simply hugging Hana. I wanted to help so I asked Hana to stay behind me as I played my mandolin. Music started to echo around me, I could see the bandits started to struggle and the others took this chance to defeat them. I should be careful about using my magic so I can only do this much…_

_“T-Thank you, Myan.. You saved--” the elf’s eyes widens, “Look out!”_

_When I turned around, there was another bandit that sneaked from behind. But before the sword could reach me, a blur figure dashed in front of me. No… No.. NO!_

_“M-Mama...”_

_I watched as my poor child limped onto the ground. I felt a sudden surge in power especially coming from my mandolin._

_‘Kill.Kill.Kill.’_

_Why… Why does it need to be Hana? Why does it have to be my sweet angel and not that black sheep?! Enough… I had enough… I’ll destroy whoever hurts my child…_

_The only thing that I remembered during that day are the fearful eyes of those who witnessed the tragedy. A loud scream as darkness consumes my consciousness and when I woke up, I was facing a faceless entity who’s simply grinning down on me._

_“I’ve been waiting for this… Your revenge… We will carry it out together. I can foresee it… Your oldest child will soon arrive in Erinn… When he does, you can play with him until you’re satisfied.”_

_And with those words, I felt the same grin forming on my lips._


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

Few days later. Eskeir was resting in the inn while browsing the notebook that Lassar gave, Morfydrianas was also peeking on it. He already finished the easy objectives for today.

“Some of these can only be done outside Tir Chonaill… As for these elementals, I know a perfect place but we have to return to Emain Macha for it. Good timing... I might as well write the letter for Queen Eirawen, she did mention that a knight will take my report every month...” Eskeir mumbled.

Morfydrianas just nodded, “We can just simply leave it to Aodhan. I’m sure the knight will see him first before looking for you.” she said.

Eskeir nods in agreement. He went to Malcolm’s General Shop to buy some papers and sat down on a chair to write on it. Malcolm was cleaning a display lute while watching Eskeir with a smile.

“How are you doing, Eskeir?” Malcolm asked.

Eskeir looks up to him, smiling “I’m good. I just need two more people to gain trust from...” he told him.

“Who are they?”

“Lassar and Ranald.” Eskeir said as he sighed.

Noticing Eskeir’s sudden change in mood, Malcolm asked “Something bothering you? I’m sure those two will easily forgive you.”

“Lassar already did but I still have to gain her trust so I’m trying to finish the work she gave as for Ranald… He’s been ignoring me ever since that meeting in the square ended.” Eskeir told him.

“I see...” Malcolm mumbled before smiling, “I heard from Endelyon that you’ve been praying in the church.”

That’s right. Eskeir started going there two days ago whenever he had the time. He’s supposed to go there again to pray after writing the letter.

“Yeah, Meven suggested that I do so… It’s actually refreshing.” Eskeir said with a small smile.

“That’s good to hear...” Malcolm said.

After writing the letter, Eskeir rolled it and tied it up using a tough string before keeping it inside his bag. Before leaving Tir Chonaill, he visited the church again to have his daily prayer. It took him half a day to reach Emain Macha and to his surprise, Emain Macha is currently snowing.

“Brr… Why is it so cold all of the sudden?” Eskeir asked himself while trembling. “I hope they are doing alright...”

When he was on his way to the square to find Luis, he saw a lot of knights gathered in front of the Healer’s House and Aodhan was with them so he proceeded in that direction instead. They seem to be carrying a lot of firewood. Aodhan notices Eskeir’s arrival, his breath is white because of the cold.

“Eskeir, you’ve returned.” Aodhan said.

Thomas grins, waving at him while trembling with the cold “H-Hey Eskeir! How are you doing?” he asked.

Eskeir stops his horse and gets off, he rubs his shoulder because of the cold. “I’m fine… What’s with the sudden snow?” he asked.

They looked at each other as if conversing with their eyes. Aodhan just smiles at him, “Just a sudden change in weather. We’re helping the townspeople with firewoods right now.” he told Eskeir, _‘I can’t tell him that this is related to the work that the milletians are doing… Elphy and the others are working near the hole right now too. They also seem to be careful not to get Eskeir involved.’_

Eskeir just stared at him with doubt before sighing. He brings out the rolled up letter and gives it to Aodhan, “My first report for the Queen in Tara… When the messenger comes here, can you give it to me?” he asked.

Aodhan nodded, taking the letter “Sure. Ah, if you’re wondering about Luis… He’s currently in your house. I insisted that he stay there until the snow stops.”

“Oh thanks.” Eskeir said in relief.

“Are you off to somewhere too?” Aodhan asked, he nodded. “I see… avoid going to the castle gates for now.. There’s a… uh...” he faked a cough, “A huge amount of snow that fell from the roofs. It would be hard to get through there.” he told him.

“Oh, ok. Thanks for the information.” Eskeir said but when he was about to walk off, there’s a sudden gust of cold wind.

“Why don’t you stay home for a while? I don’t think it’s safe to venture out with this weather...” Aodhan told him.

Eskeir sighs, “I guess I should do that or else I’ll freeze to death...” he mumbled.

“I’ll bring the horse to the stable. Come find me when you’re going to borrow him again.” Thomas said as he pats the horse that Eskeir used.

“Alright, thanks.” Eskeir looks around them, “...Don’t you guys need some help?” he asked but Aodhan and Thomas suddenly pushed him away in a playful manner.

“It’s fine~ Go have some rest with Luis~” Thomas immediately said.

Aodhan nods, “We have enough hands so we got this.”

Sighing, Eskeir just nodded and walked towards his house. He knocks then Luis opens the door. As soon as he sees that it was Eskeir, a big grin forms with his lips.

“OH! Eskeir, my brother! You’re back! Come come! I just boiled some water for hot chocolate~” Luis told him.

Eskeir smiles as he gets in, brushing off the snow on his armor.

“Go change into something comfortable~ I’ll be making our drinks~” Luis said.

Eskeir headed towards his room to change and also placed some of his clothing in his bag. After changing, he joins Luis in the living room.

“So how’s your trip, Eskeir~?” Luis asked with a grin.

“It’s good… I’m almost done with Tir Chonaill.” he told him before blowing the hot choco.

Luis hums, watching him “How did it go? Are there people who are mad?” he asked.

“...At first some are mad but we worked it out somehow… Except for one person… He’s been ignoring me...” Eskeir told him, Luis frowns.

“That’s mean!” Luis exclaimed, Eskeir just nodded. “Don’t worry, Eskeir! I’m sure you’ll be able to talk it out with him somehow.”

Eskeir smiles a bit, “I hope so too...” he said softly before looking at the window. “Brother Luis, since when did it snow this much?”

“Two days after you left. It really surprised us, you know! It doesn’t get this cold in Emain Macha!” Luis told him while waving his hands, “I also heard that they found a really big hole-” his eyes suddenly widens then covers his mouth, “Oh nothing! Nothing!”

Eskeir raises an eyebrow, “I’m not deaf, brother… What do you mean by a big hole? Is it related to what the Expeditionary Force are working on?” he asked as he puts his mug down.

Luis nervously scratches his cheek, “U-Uhm… N-Not really...” he stuttered.

Eskeir crosses his arms and just stares at Luis, _‘It looks like it is… Are they trying to pull me away from it since I’m a mortal now? ...But a big hole… Mor-- Mom, do you know anything about this?’_

_What good will it do to you if you knew~? It’s not like you can do anything, right?_

Eskeir gritted his teeth, _‘Yeah but-’_

_It’s better if you’ll just ignore this, Eskeir. I’m sure the others are already working on this… Knowing them, they’ll quickly solve this night._

“So it’s related to the seven nights...” Eskeir mumbled softly.

_Eek- You meanie! You made me slip up!_

_‘And I’m glad you did.’_ Eskeir sighs.

Eskeir looks at Luis again who was just looking at him nervously. He gives out a long sigh before drinking his hot chocolate again, “Fine, fine. I won’t ask you anymore.” Luis sighs in relief before finishing his own drink.

It snowed until night time so Eskeir planned to just leave tomorrow if the snow ever stopped. The next morning, the snow did stop and it became much more warmer like how Emain Macha should be.

“Are you going now?” Luis asked, pouting.

Eskeir smiles and pats Luis, “I’ll come back again soon.” he told him, Luis just nodded. He checked his bag before leaving.

“Don’t force yourself, okay??” Luis exclaimed, Eskeir just waved his hand while he headed towards the castle gate.

When he arrived, Aodhan led him to his horse and left after exchanging some words. Eskeir reaches a moon gate and he stares at it.

_Can you already use moon gates?_

Eskeir shakes his head before staring at his hand, “It’s strange… Anyone should be able to use it but strangely, I can’t. Well... I can try to use my milletian energy-”

Morfydrianas suddenly materializes in front of him, surprising Eskeir. 

“No! This is not an emergency!” Morfydrianas told him, frowning.

“Eehh… How do we get to Ceo Island then? We can only go there through mana gates and I doubt someone is willing to let us use a boat...” Eskeir mumbled.

Morfydrianas suddenly grinned while he just looked at her with a question in his face. Morfydrianas waves her hand and Eskeir could feel a cold mist enveloping him.

“Ya know, I also learned some tricks while you’re doing odd jobs in Tir Chonaill~” Morfydrianas told him proudly.

Eskeir began to float off his horse, “I-I see...” he looked around then down to his horse who seemed to be staring at him, “Uhh… What about the horse?”

“Well, I can only carry one person sooo... let’s leave it here? I’m sure it won't go anywhere.” Morfydrianas told him with a nervous smile.

Eskeir smiles and pats the horse’s head, “Alright, wait here. We’ll come back.” he mumbled before nodding to Morfydrianas. “Let’s go then, the island should just be across this whole lake.”

Morfydrianas hums and the two of them begin to fly across the lake. Eskeir was looking around for any familiar island but strangely, they can’t spot it and fog started to build up around them.

“Woah, it’s surely foggy in this area, Kier~” Morfydrianas said as she whistles.

Eskeir grumbles, “Oh yeah… That’s one of the problems why sailors can’t see the island… That’s why there’s a moon gate to use. I think we should go back and ask someone to bring us there if you really don’t want me to use my milletian energy.” he told her.

Morfydrianas ponders a bit before nodding, “That seems safer but… How are we supposed to return?” she asked Eskeir with a nervous smile.

Eskeir facepalms, “We’re lost then? I guess we just have to try our luck to find some land.” he told her, “Let’s go, let’s go.” he said while waving his hand.

Morfydrianas sighs and the two of them continue to wander around the sea of fog. It took them probably around 30 minutes to finally see the land and luckily, it was Ceo Island.

“This would be the last time, sheesh.” Eskeir said as he landed on the ground.

Morfydrianas was only frowning, “At least we’re on Ceo Island now.” she told her.

Eskeir stares at the sky, “Afternoon is almost coming too… We should hurry.” he said as he brings out the notebook he got from Lassar. “10 elementals for fire, ice and lightning. Good thing Lassar gave me the specific wands needed to harvest them before I left Tir Chonaill.” he mumbled before facing Morfydrianas, “Alright, let’s go. There’s golem in here too so be careful not to aggro any of them.”

“I will try~” Morfydrianas said with a grin.

The two carefully walked to the area where the three sprites are.

“Since you’re able to hold me earlier using the mist, can you do the same to these three? I’m sure you can hold them at the same time... It would be easier to harvest the elementals from them that way.” Eskeir told her.

“What an easy cheat.” Morfydrianas pouted but she waved her hand anyway, making some mist that holds onto the sprites.

The sprites seem surprised and confused at the same time. Eskeir brought out the fire wand first and started harvesting some fire elementals. 

“Do you want me to gather the others?” Morfydrianas asked, sounding really bored.

Eskeir just nodded so Morfydrianas took out the lightning wand from his bag and started harvesting some lightning elementals from it.

“So when are you actually planning to go to Dunbarton?” Morfydrianas suddenly asked.

Eskeir just shrugged, “When I’m ready I guess...”

“And when will that be~?” she asked, putting down the first lightning elemental that she got. “Next year? Or during your third year?”

Eskeir just frowns, “Shut up and just focus on your work.”

After gathering all three elementals, the two walked towards the goblin near the moon gate. The goblin looks at Eskeir in surprise, Morfydrianas makes herself invisible too.

“Huh? Where did you come from, human?” the goblin, Muro, asked.

“Oh, I used a boat and ended up here. I was looking for a way back to Emain Macha.” Eskeir lied but Muro just nodded, understanding his situation.

Muro scratches his head, “I thought they have discouraged the use of boats around this area… Oh well.. if you need to return, I can help.” he told him.

“Thanks!”

When Eskeir and Morfydrianas returned to Emain Macha, his horse is still on the spot where he left him. It neighs when it notices its owner’s arrival. Eskeir gently pats the horse’s mane while looking around.

“Seems like they closed the rift in time...” Morfydrianas mumbled but Eskeir heard about it.

He raises an eyebrow as he asks, “What rift?”

Morfydrianas seems surprised but just smiles, “Ah nothing, I’m just mumbling nonsense.” she told him with a grin, Eskeir frowns.

“Are you hiding something from me, Mom?” Eskeir asked her, putting emphasis on the ‘Mom’ part.

“Am I? Maybe? No?” Morfydrianas simply said before disappearing.

Eskeir sighs and just shakes his head before riding on his horse and traveling back to Tir Chonaill. While passing through Dugald Aisle, Eskeir was reading Lassar’s notebook for his next work. While turning the next pages, his hand suddenly stopped and he gave out a long sigh.

“...Picking up books from Aeria huh...” Eskeir mumbled.

_Is it in Dunbarton again?_

Eskeir slowly nodded as he scratched his head, “It seems to be a lot of books too... Should I start wearing an eyepatch?” he asked.

Morfydrianas frowns while floating around his mindspace.

_Why cover up your beautiful eyes? Just ignore them~_

Eskeir reddens a bit, “W-Will you ever stop with the teasing, mom?!” he softly exclaimed, Morfydrianas only laughed.

~To be continued...

**::.FIFTH SONG.::**

_I’ve been filled with nothing but emptiness. My only daughter… killed! Why does it have to be her who appeared? Why not that useless boy?!_

_“It’s all going according to what we want...”_

_Is what the unknown entity has been telling me… I have no single idea what it was planning but as long as I can get my revenge… I’ll continue to follow it’s guidance._

_I spent months exploring this world called Erinn. This continent where I am right now is called Uladh and I’ve been in most of the places. I have planned to ride a ship to go to Belvast, a very well known marketplace. As I waited for a departure, I heard some commotion near the stairs of the ship._

_“P-Please let me ride!” a young girl pleaded._

_Curious, I decided to watch the scene as I fixed my hood on. It seems like this young girl doesn’t have any elderly with her and the captain of the ship doesn’t want to let her come because she has no guardian._

_I only stared at the young girl and suddenly unfamiliar memories entered my mind. I can see the young girl and it seems like she and her parents are on a trip only to get their wagon attacked by a huge white bear. It was painful but I saw both of her parents getting killed and eaten by it. How sad… Is this the girl’s memory? Then why is she riding this ship to Belvast?_

_Giving out a sigh, I walked forward as I pulled down my hood and faking an act._

_“Oh my! Is that you, child? Auntie is surprised to see you here~”_

_The young girl looked at me while the captain watched me in confusion._

_“Ah madam bard, are you related to this young child?”_

_I slowly nodded, “I’m her Auntie. Right?”_

_The young girl realized what I’m trying to do and ran up to me with a hug, “Auntie!!!”_

_I smiled at the captain and he tipped his hat a bit, “A lucky coincidence~ She can come then~”_

_I walked to a spot that isn’t crowded with the young girl following me, “What is your name, child?” I asked as softly as I could._

_“H-Hanae...”_

_Hana..e… She almost has a similar name as my daughter…_

_“Hanae, do you want to stay with me? I’m a traveling bard and my name’s Myan.” I asked and her face brightened up._

_Yes, I won't leave this poor child alone. I promise to her parents who are watching from above…_

_She’ll be my daughter…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> NEVAH COME WITH STRANGERS OKAY???
> 
> Also, sorry for the late update! xD I was working with chapter 7 and got stuck-- But I'm okay now!  
> I usually update this story when I finish the next 2 chapters~


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

“Are you sure about this?” Malcolm asked as he put a bandage on Eskeir’s right eye so only his emerald eye is visible.

Eskeir simply nodded, “They’ll easily recognize me if I don’t cover it up… I do have a strange combination of heterochromia eyes...”

Malcolm hums, “True but… Amber and emerald are really nice colors...” he mumbled then pats Eskeir, “There, done.”

“Thanks.” Eskeir said with a smile before heading outside.

He headed to Dunbarton and arrived at Aeria’s bookshop a little early so he decided to wait. He sat on the stairs, watching some milletians who seemed to be reading a new book. Later on Aeria arrived and before Eskeir could stand, an orangish-yellow orb(?*) fell down beside him. He turns around but the person who passed by him is no longer there. He frowns as he picks up the orb.

_I can feel something in it…_

_‘Well… I guess I’ll just keep it for now. A milletian dropped it so it might not be useful. I’m quite interested in it though, it’s my first time to see this kind of item.’_ Eskeir examines the orb before keeping it in his bag.

_Are you sure it’s something safe~?_

_‘Yeah, look.’_ Eskeir stares at the milletians talking to Aeria and few of them were holding the same item.

_Humm~ I see~ It seems to be some kind of new skill? Let’s go ask the book girl~~_

Eskeir scratches the back of his neck while walking towards Aeria. He brings out Lassar’s notebook and opens it to the page with the list of books that he needs to pick up before showing it to Aeria.

She looks at it before smiling, “Ah! Lassar’s orders? Sure, I got them here~ Please wait~” Aeria told him as she put the notebook down and went rummaging the nearby boxes.

“..The milletians seem to be working on a new skill...” Eskeir said while looking around.

Aeria giggled, “There’s a new book we got in stock lately and it’s about Glyphwrighting. They really seem so interested in it. Are you interested?” she asked while checking each book from the list.

Eskeir stayed quiet before saying, “N-No… Just curious. It’s not everyday we get to see something new.” he told her.

Aeria nods, “True… Alright, here it is.” she said, patting a stack of books.

“Thank you. Is it alright for me to ask for your help on putting these books on the basket?” Eskeir asked, pointing his thumb on his horse’s side baskets.

“Of course! No problem!” Aeria said with a smile then she helped Eskeir with the books.

After bidding goodbye to Aeria, Eskeir rode on his horse and made his way out of Dunbarton. Thankfully, he got out without any problems this time so he arrived in Tir Chonaill without worry. When he arrived at the Magic School, there are more orbs on the ground.

Ranald sighs, “What with these milletians dropping Glyphs everywhere?” he asked himself but when he notices Eskeir’s arrival, he went back to his activity without saying anything.

Eskeir only sighed as he hopped down from his horse and carried the basket inside one by one. He gave the notebook to Lassar.

“Thanks! Now we're done-- Are you okay?” Lassar asked, noticing the bandage on his head.

Eskeir nods as he removes the bandage, “Since I need to go to Dunbarton, might as well cover my other eye...” he told her.

Lassar sighs in relief, “I see… I thought you got wounded while doing some of the work I gave...” she told him with a soft smile. She looks at the items that Eskeir brought in before, “You really finished everything… Alright, you have my trust back!” she said with a grin.

Eskeir smiles, “Thank you… I promise to never break your trust again.”

“So Ranald is left?” Lassar asked, Eskeir nodded.

“I’ll have some rest first… I’ll try talking to Ranald tomorrow.” Eskeir said.

“I see… Have a good rest, Eskeir.” Lassar told him, he nodded before leaving.

He passed by Ranald then he suddenly heard something like…

_See how they look at you? What would you call that? Adoration? Respect? Caution? Fear…?_

His eyes widen, glancing back at Ranald who seems busy with swinging his sword. He sighs before walking his horse towards the inn.

 _‘...Mom… Did you say something earlier?’_ Eskeir asked while deep in thoughts.

_Hmm? No, I didn’t. Why?_

Eskeir bit his lower lip, _‘N-Nothing… Nevermind.’_

While Eskeir was sleeping, the Glyph on his bag kept on glowing before floating up. It stayed like that for a few minutes before hovering over Eskeir and dropping beside him, the glow also disappeared. _(A/N - These three lines below aren’t really what you can see in the suspicious whispers glyph. I just made it up for the story~)_

_Wouldn’t it be better if you can just return?_

_In this world, only a few people will trust you and what about the rest?_

_In their faces, they seem alright with it but don’t you think they are forgiving you easily?_

Eskeir’s face scrunches up in his sleep. Morfydrianas seem to notice this so she materializes beside the sleeping boy. She gently caresses his hair then in the corner of her eyes, she notices the Glyph.

 _‘I don’t remember this being here...’_ Morfydrianas thought before picking up the Glyph. _‘Glyphs… I can still feel some kind of power in it. I should probably try to persuade Eskeir about getting the book from Aeria… Or… To borrow from those three milletians if ever they have it.’_ she smiles a bit before putting the Glyph back in Eskeir’s bag, not noticing it glowing again.

The next morning, Eskeir went down for breakfast and had his meal in an unusual quiet manner that confused Piaras. He didn’t mind it though thinking that he might be like that because he just woke up. A little later, Eskeir left to try talking with Ranald again and when he arrived, Ranald seemed to be waiting for him.

“I heard you finished Lazzar’s works.” Ranald said, Eskeir nodded. Before the young boy can talk, Ranald holds up his hand “I know I know… It’s true that I’ve been avoiding you… It’s just hard to believe what has been happening lately… I waited until I’m the last person you need.”

“Then.. does that mean you’re still willing to forgive me?” Eskeir asked.

Ranald sighs and just gives him a dark brown pass(?), Eskeir takes it and stares at it. “Bring me the Giant Spider’s eye from the Alby’s old room dungeon and if you’re able to do it then I can trust you. It will take time for me to forgive you Eskeir, but I can try trusting you again.”

Eskeir’s eyes widens, “Alby’s old room?” he asked, Ranald nodded.

“You can’t ask for help, you should do it by yourself. Here, take this as well.” Ranald hands him a small bag.

Eskeir takes it and checks the contents. There are various kinds of potions, bandages, some bread and bottled water. There seems to be an old but working pocket watch too.

“It’s up to you if you wanna take this challenge. If not..” Ranald narrows his eyes at him, “Then you won't be able to gain my trust.” he said in a stern voice.

“..I’ll.. I’ll do it! I’ll bring the Giant Spider’s eye to you!” Eskeir told him with confidence.

Ranald smirks a bit, “I’ll wait for you then. Don’t waste this chance. I’ll tell Piaras about this so you don’t have to worry about making the others search for you.” he told him, Eskeir nodded and quickly headed towards Alby dungeon.

When Eskeir arrived at the old room of Alby Dungeon, he double checked his bag and his weapon before dropping the pass in the altar. The pass soon burned up and then a path of stairs appeared behind the Statue of the Goddess. Eskeir carefully walked down the stairs.

_Do you need my help?_

Eskeir shakes his head, “I’ll do this alone… I know this dungeon is dangerous but if it’s to earn Ranald’s trust then I have to do this.”

_...Don’t force yourself. When I sense that you’re in great danger, I’ll help whether you like it or not._

“Fine...” Eskeir mumbled as he unsheathed both of his swords.

What Eskeir can remember about this dungeon is that it’s much more dangerous than the normal Alby dungeon. There are a lot more poisonous spiders in this place and he’s thankful that Ranald included some antidotes on the bag given to him. He only has 5 of it so he needs to be extra cautious around those kinds of spiders. Since he only has few of his milletian energy, he’s sure that he can’t recover from the poisoning so he only has 5 chances or else he might not get out of this dungeon alive.

Eskeir remembers the days he did this with some other milletians. With a party, it’s actually an easy dungeon but with him by himself… It can be challenging especially now that he’s no longer a milletian. He remembered the dungeon having 3 floors with many rooms. He’s sure that he won’t be able to finish this in one day so maybe after two days, he’ll be able to finish this dungeon.

The first floor didn’t give that much struggle for Eskeir. He can also use basic magic since Lassar started teaching him when he delivered the elementals before. Halfway to the first floor, he didn’t get poisoned as he quickly killed the poisonous spiders before it could attack him. Even Morfydrianas was amused to see how strong Eskeir had become. 

Meanwhile, Ranald headed towards the inn to tell Piaras about the challenge he gave to Eskeir. After delivering the news, Piaras and Nora glared at him with anger.

“You sent him alone in that dangerous place?!” Nora asked, raising her voice.

Ranald crosses his arms, “He’ll be fine. He has combat experience so I doubt he’ll easily get beaten up.” he told her.

“But Eskeir’s a mortal now! Unlike a milletian, he doesn’t recover that fast and he might not even be as strong as his old self!” Nora exclaimed.

Piaras pats Nora’s shoulder, calming her down. “I can’t believe you just sent him out like that… Is he prepared?” he asked.

Ranald nodded, “I prepared in advance. I gave him enough potions and food too. I also got some help from a certain milletian, I didn’t tell Eskeir about it but he’s probably following him from behind. If anything happens, he’ll intervene and help but that means he failed.”

Nora sighs, “...So you had someone to watch him… Thank goodness… Your challenge is just too much… He only needs our forgiveness and trust back… You could have given him a different task.” she told him in a saddened tone.

“Ranald, you have to tell Duncan about this… Also go to Dilys so if ever Eskeir returned wounded, she can quickly attend to him.” Piaras told him in a stern tone.

Ranald sighs and just nodded before leaving the inn and did what he was told to do. As expected, Duncan was surprised and scolded Ranald a bit. What Duncan can do right now is to pray for Eskeir to be safe and to return without any severe injuries. Dilys prepared herself too when Ranald told her about the challenge.

A day has passed and Eskeir hasn't returned. Nora began to worry so she asked Trefor to always watch Alby’s entrance to see if Eskeir had returned. Those who have heard about Eskeir’s situation just waited patiently and prayed for him.

Meanwhile in the second floor of the dungeon. Eskeir was resting in an empty room while drinking his water. He has used up two antidotes. As he gets deeper, the monsters keep on getting tougher and stronger. After getting enough rest, he continues to venture through each room, fighting every monster that he’s encountering. In one certain room while fighting some Spider Goblins, he heard another whisper.

_Be careful. They are near…_

Eskeir’s eyes widened and quickly turned around, blocking the incoming attack from a newly spawned Black Poisonous Spider. He clicked his tongue before slashing his sword, killing it.

In a corner of the room hidden perfectly in the shadows, a pair of eyes was watching him. When Eskeir finishes the room and moves to the next one, the hidden guy steps out of the shadow revealing his lime green hair. His golden eyes stare at Eskeir’s back before silently following him. He’s wearing a dark purple Mortello’s Pitch Black Suit matched with a dark purple hat.

 _‘He’s acting strange… As if bothered by something...’_ he thought as he hides himself in another corner, watching Eskeir.

He notices the glow on his bag, it’s the same glow that Glyphs emits when it’s used. After Eskeir killed the monsters in the room, he grumbled and yelled out something snapping the mysterious person’s thoughts.

“What do you mean you’re not saying anything?! What am I hearing then?!” Eskeir asked.

The mysterious person doesn’t know about Morfydrianas living in Eskeir’s mind so he was confused on why the young knight is suddenly yelling at no one.

Eskeir ruffles his own hair in frustration, “Agh! Shut up! What do you mean by ‘Many eyes look upon you. I am the only one you can trust’?!” he asked again.

Then the mysterious person finally knows the problem. What’s causing this to Eskeir was the Glyph on his possession. 

_‘I’m quite new to Glyphwrighting but I heard from my friends that there’s a certain Glyph that keeps on making creepy suspicious whispers to whoever holds onto it… But how did he get that Glyph?’_ the mysterious person asked himself. _‘Haa… What should I do without revealing myself?’_ his eyes suddenly twinkled as an idea appeared in his mind.

Eskeir holds his head while wincing. The whispers that he has been hearing keeps on going. Morfydrianas seem to be angry too, both of them have been quarreling for a long time now. He was about to argue again but he suddenly heard something growling behind him. When he turned around, he saw a Beetle Wolf.

“A Beetle Wolf? This is the second floor, there shouldn’t be any Beetle Wolf in here!” Eskeir exclaimed as he pointed his sword to the monster.

_You kept on rambling that’s why you attracted one from the upper or lower floor!!_

“Aren’t you the one that started it?!” Eskeir asked, not noticing the Beetle Wolf sighing.

_I already said that I’m not the one whispering to you! Humph!_

The Beetle Wolf took this chance to charge towards Eskeir while he’s not on guard. Eskeir tried to block but then the monster only bit his bag, taking it from him.

“What the-- Hey, give it back!!” Eskeir exclaimed while following the Beetle Wolf.

The Beetle Wolf seems to stop at one of the past rooms and Eskeir approaches it carefully. He watched as the Beetle Wolf dropped the bag and took something out of it. 

“Hey, that’s--” Before Eskeir can stop it, the Beetle Wolf ran away with the Glyph in its mouth. 

_I guess it likes the Glyph?_

Eskeir simply shrugged and picked his bag up to see if anything is missing or broken. He sighs in relief when he sees that his other stuff is safe.

The Beetle Wolf hides in the corner and transforms into the mysterious person. He was holding the Glyph on his right hand while the left held a Dream Catcher. He examines the Glyph before nodding.

“As I thought… This Glyph has the effect of giving off suspicious whispers...” he mumbled before putting it in his pocket.

When he realizes that Eskeir has left, he quickly follows him deeper into the dungeon. He’s still hidden while observing him.

~To be continued...

**::.SIXTH SONG.::**

_While Hanae and I are traveling, we ended up having a lot more companions. Most of them are traveling bards like me but I’m still the oldest in the group. There was that time when we were taking a rest, I tried to use my power to brainwash them with my music. It takes time for my power to take effect but in the end it worked. Of course, I didn’t brainwash Hanae, only the others who ended up joining us. I need to form a group, I need to gain more power so when HE arrives then I won’t have any problem with making him suffer._

_This is all for the unknown entity’s plan._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And we’re back to short side story again-- hahaha--  
> Also, I know that Glyphwrighting skills appeared during the release of G25 p2 so don’t mind it here appearing a bit earlier xD  
> ?* - tbh idk what the glyph really looks like. For me, it looks like an orb but when you drop it, it looks different xD I imagine it like the dorcha crystal when you drop one. Something close to that (dropped look)


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

Eskeir finally arrived on the last floor of the dungeon. When he checked the pocket watch, he realized that it’s already night time. No wonder he already feels a bit sleepy. He decided to take a rest on the third floor’s room of the Statue of the Goddess. Morfydrianas materializes beside him as he slowly falls asleep, she’s always keeping watch every night time so that Eskeir can have a full rest.

“Seems like he’s getting a good sleep tonight...” she mumbled while caressing his hair.

Ever since they picked up the Glyph, Eskeir have been having trouble sleeping that makes him look like having some kind of nightmare. She feels like thanking the Beetle Wolf for taking it away because that seems to be the reason why Eskeir have been experiencing that.

“Glyphs are dangerous...” she said with a frown.

Suddenly, she feels like being watched so she suddenly turns around. She observes their surroundings for anything suspicious but didn’t find anything.

“Am I just imagining it?” she asked herself before sighing, “I’m probably tired… Wait, how do I even get tired? I’ve been staying inside Eskeir’s mind!” she suddenly exclaimed, making Eskeir move a bit in his sleep. She suddenly turned quiet before softly smiling.

The next day, Eskeir continues to do the dungeon after eating the remaining bread he has. When he was already halfway in the dungeon, he used up two more of his antidotes so he only had one left. The mysterious person who has been observing him is silently drinking a chocolate milk drink.

_‘It seems like he can finish this dungeon… What Ranald said is right… He’s still strong. When I first heard rumors about Hitsuji Kuro returning and staying in Emain Macha, I grew curious. Good thing while I was staying in Tir Chonaill, Ranald asked me for this request… I really don’t mind stalking him like this, I’m really curious… How can a strong milletian like him give up being like us? He’s strange.’_ the mysterious person thought to himself before following Eskeir to the next room.

Eskeir reached the room with orbs, he looks around mumbling to himself before hitting the one on the right side of the closed door. The mysterious person hums while watching him.

‘He doesn’t have any support puppet with him but he can tell the right orb that opens the door...’ he said before staring at the little green haired girl on his shoulder. He smiles, patting her head before following Eskeir. ***** _‘Is it pure luck or he knows the pattern?’_

_Eskeir~ You doing good?_

Eskeir just nodded while pulling his sword from a dead poisonous spider, _‘I think we’re past the half of the last floor...’_

_You only have one antidote left so be careful~_

“Yes, yes...” he mumbled but before he could walk towards the next room, he glanced behind him. _‘I always get this feeling that I’m being watched...’_

Morfydrianas just stayed quiet but she won't deny that she also feels the same. Eskeir just shakes his head before continuing to the next room.

_(A/N - Why am I so bad with dungeon stuff?! Sorry but time skip to the boss room!!! TwT)_

Eskeir pants as he finally reaches the boss room, he checks his potions and realizes that he had used his last antidote and that he only has 3 hp potions left.

He grumbled, “I better be careful not to get poisoned if I want to get out of this dungeon alive...”

_I’ll help you and I won’t take a no!_

Eskeir sighs before nodding, the room where they are currently at begins to chill as Morfydrianas materializes beside him. The mysterious person felt the sudden change in atmosphere and observed him in confusion. Eskeir stares at the red key on his hand then unlocks the door. As they entered, a Giant Spider was waiting for them. There are also few red spiders around. As soon as he stepped inside, the Giant Spider and it’s minions immediately sensed him and attacked.

Eskeir casted firebolt and shot the little ones then casted lightning bolt to the Giant Spider to stun it even for only a second. He ran to give distance from the spider and continued to shoot firebolts but it didn’t seem to affect the Giant Spider that much. He clicked his tongue and charged forward with his two swords, Morfydrianas used the mist to hold the spider’s legs and Eskeir used this opening to cut off it’s legs. The Giant Spider made a monstrous scream and Morfydrianas grins.

“Gotcha!” Morfydrianas exclaimed.

_‘I’ve been training on this skill… I know it’s not as strong as when I was still a milletian.’_ Eskeir’s takes a deep breath before running back to the spider, slashing it. _(trying to do bash here--)_

Thinking that it won't be able to move anymore, Morfydrianas simply watched with a smile.

Eskeir bashes his sword at the spider again, dealing more damage. He continues to do that until the spider no longer moves.

“Is it dead? Is it dead?” Morfydrianas asked while hovering around Eskeir.

“It seems so. I’ll go grab the eye for Ranald.” Eskeir said while walking towards the Giant Spider’s eye. 

When he was about to stab it’s eye, the Giant Spider suddenly moved and grabbed Eskeir using its fangs(?) making the young boy scream in pain.

“Eskeir!” Morfydrianas yelled in surprise. The mysterious person that has been watching them seems to be surprised too.

Eskeir glared at the spider and quickly stabbed both of its eyes with his sword. The Giant Spider let out another scream, dropping Eskeir on the ground with a loud thud. The spider went limp, a sign that it’s finally dead. Morfydrianas rushed beside Eskeir who was wincing in pain.

“Eskeir! W-Was he poisoned?!” Morfydrianas panicked. 

Before she could use the mist to pick him up, she heard footsteps from behind. Turning around, she saw the mysterious person. She was still invisible so he couldn't see her. Eskeir opens his eyes slowly, looking at Morfydrianas then to the familiar person.

_‘He’s… The milletian… that Ranald talked with...’_ Eskeir told Morfydrianas.

“He has been observing then?! No wonder I’ve been feeling like we’re being watched!” Morfydrianas exclaimed with only Eskeir hearing her.

Eskeir wanted to argue back that the guy's mainly watching him but due to the poison, he slowly feels nauseous and his sight begins to get blurry. The mysterious milletian seems to notice his condition and quickly pulls out a bottle of antidote.

“You fought well...” he said, lifting his head up a bit, making him drink the antidote. Morfydrianas simply watched and sighs in relief.

The mysterious milletian stands up and brings out three pieces of Phantasmal Remnant and mutters, “Zone of Renewal.”

A white tree suddenly grows near them and begins to heal Eskeir. Morfydrianas stares at the familiar tree with nostalgia, remembering her time with Talek. She shakes her head before disappearing, returning to Eskeir’s mindscape because she got a feeling that this milletian was here for Eskeir.

When the white tree disappears, the mysterious milletian carries the unconscious Eskeir and walks towards the dead Giant Spider, pulling off Eskeir’s swords and also grabbing an eye.

Trefor decided to check Alby’s old room again and when he arrived, the mysterious milletian also appeared behind the statue of the goddess.

“Theo! Wait- Is that Eskeir?!” Trefor asked. The mysterious milletian, Theo Ikki, simply nodded. ****** “Let’s hurry to Dilys then!”

The two hurried to the Healer’s House. Dilys quickly attended to Eskeir while Trefor and Theo talked about what happened in the dungeon.

“He really did it? Wow...” Trefor said in both surprise and relief. 

Later on, Dilys walks towards them with a soft smile. Trefor asked, “How is he?”

“Thanks to Theo’s healing, the wound he had on his sides where the spider bit him only became a minor injury. If Ranald didn’t ask Theo to watch Eskeir...” Dilys told them, her voice slowly faltering in the last sentence. She shakes her head and smiles at them, “But he’ll be fine now. He’ll wake up in an hour or two.”

Trefor sighs in relief, “Thank goodness! Oh, where are you going?” he asked Theo, noticing him walking out.

“...Belvast.” Theo said.

“Oh… See you again soon, then!” Trefor said, waving his hand.

Theo smiles a bit before he completely leaves. An hour and a half already passed and Trefor also had left to return to his usual area. While Dilys was making some potions, Eskeir begun to wake up. She heard him grumbling so she placed the herbs down.

“Ugh… Where am I…?” Eskeir asked, slowly getting up.

Dilys went to get a glass of water before walking to Eskeir, “You’ve woken up. How are you feeling, Eskeir?” she asked, handing him the glass of water.

“Oh Dilys… I’m back in town?” he asked, accepting the water. “I’m doing fine now… My side is just aching a bit. How did I get out of the dungeon?”

Dilys remembered Theo saying to keep his observation a secret so she just said, “Trefor was checking the old room for a while now and when he checked it again, he saw you unconscious in the old room’s lobby.”

Eskeir looks at her in confusion as he tries to remember what happened before he loses his consciousness, _‘Strange… I’m sure I saw the milletian that talked with Ranald before...’_

“You should rest for now, Eskeir. You can just go to Ranald tomorrow. Ah, Trefor also saw this Giant Spider’s eye with you.” Dilys told him, handing out the eye.

Eskeir shivers a bit, seeing the eye. He keeps it in his bag before nodding, “Thanks for taking care of me, Dilys.”

Dilys just nodded then watches as Eskeir leaves the Healer’s House. When Eskeir reaches the inn, Nora and Piaras welcome him back with a feast. Theo Ikki actually informed them that he just finished the dungeon so they decided to prepare a little feast for him which perfectly surprised the young boy. As usual, Theo asked them to not tell Eskeir about him so Piaras just told him that it was Trefor who informed them about his return. After the feast, Eskeir went up to his room and had a long rest that he woke up late in the next day, the time almost hitting afternoon. Piaras understood Eskeir’s condition though so he just waited and prepared Eskeir’s lunch instead of breakfast.

When Eskeir finally walked down from the second floor, Piaras saw that he had his things prepared for leaving.

“Already planning to move to another place?” Piaras asked, Eskeir nodded as he sat down. He placed a plate of savory meal and a glass of water in front of Eskeir. “That’s sad… Don’t forget to visit Duncan after talking with Ranald.”

“Will do.” Eskeir said before eating his meal.

After his meal and saying goodbye to both Piaras and Nora, Eskeir headed towards the Magic School with his horse. Lassar seems to be with Ranald and it looks like she’s scolding the man.

Upon his arrival, Eskeir can still hear Lassar’s scolding, “This is the last time you’ll do this kind of dangerous thing okay??”

Ranald just sighs before noticing Eskeir. He grins, “He seems alright for me. Look.” he said, pointing at Eskeir.

Lassar immediately turns around and checks Eskeir, looking to see if he has any other injuries, “Are you okay?? I heard from The-- Trefor that he found you unconscious in the old room’s lobby! How’s your injuries?!” she asked, Eskeir being surprised just stayed quiet.

“Now, now. I’m sure he’s fine.” Ranald chuckled, he seemed to be acting differently than how he usually acts when Eskeir’s around.

Lassar just glares at Ranald before letting go of Eskeir. She crosses her arms, sighing. Ranald looks at Eskeir before smirking, “So? Where’s the trophy?” he asked.

Eskeir brings out the Giant Spider’s eye from his bag. Ranald takes it and examines it closely.

“Yup, this is the Giant Spider’s eye. You passed. Well, I know you’ll do anyway. I just want to see if your fighting got rusty but I guess you’re still strong even as a mortal now.” Ranald told Eskeir, _‘Though in the end, Theo ended up saving him… I’ll let that go.’_

Eskeir looks at him nervously, “So… Do I get your trust now?” he asked, Ranald hums making the young boy more nervous. 

Lassar glares at him again, “Ranald.”

Ranald laughs, “Yeah yeah~ Don’t waste it this time, Eskeir.” he told him with a serious tone.

Eskeir nods. Lassar notices the bags on Eskeir’s back and the items on the baskets, “...Are you leaving Tir Chonaill already?” she asked with a small hint of sadness.

“Y-Yeah… There’s still a lot of places where I need to be.” Eskeir replied with a small smile.

“I see… Visit us from time to time, okay?! I still have to see how your magic progresses! I’m your teacher after all!” Lassar told him, Eskeir simply chuckled before nodding.

Eskeir went out of the Magic School and visited Duncan and the others to bid farewell before leaving Tir Chonaill. When he passed by Caitin’s shop earlier, he took his white eyepatch that he had asked her to make.

As usual, he passed by Dunbarton and headed towards Gairech Hills since his next destination is Bangor. He didn’t encounter that many monsters so he arrived a bit early.

_So who are you going to talk to first?_

Eskeir started to ponder about it, “Probably Comgan...” he mumbled, Morfydrianas simply hums.

He sees Ibbie on the usual spot upon entering Bangor. He wonders how he can explain it to her without making her upset, he also remembered that he forgot to buy some cake for her. When the little girl notices Eskeir and recognizes him as the knight who came to Bangor before, she smiles.

“Ah! It’s the big brother from before… How did… the investigation go? Were you able to find… Big brother Kuro?” Ibbie asked shyly.

It took some minutes before Eskeir could answer. He goes off his horse and kneels down in one knee in front of Ibbie, “..M-Mhmm… We found him… But you might not like it...” he told her, Ibbie tilts her head in confusion.

“Why? What happened to him?” she asked.

Eskeir simply pats her head, just smiling. “...Want to accompany me to Comgan? I came here to tell him about… him after all...”

Ibbie nods and holds his hand as both of them walk towards Comgan. The young Priest notices their arrival and softly smiles.

“Good afternoon, Ibbie… And Eskeir right? The knight who was with the Expeditionary Force from before.” Comgan said.

“I’m surprised that you can still recognize me.” Eskeir said.

Comgan chuckles, “I recognize your pale pink hair… Though your eye is still a bit brighter than the last time I saw it… It’s somehow close to hazelnut color before...” he told him then asked, “So how did it go? Were you able to find the missing milletian?”

Eskeir looks around in nervousness before nodding, Ibbie looks excited to hear about it too. Comgan looks at him in surprise before smiling.

“How is he? Is he well?” Comgan asked, again Eskeir nodded. “Where is he now?”

Eskeir takes a deep breath before removing his eyepatch, “It’s me. I’m Hitsuji Kuro.” he told them, Ibbie’s excitement stopped as Comgan’s mouth stayed open.

“Pardon?” Comgan asked, stepping a bit closer to Eskeir.

_‘Ah… Feels like a Deja Vu.’_ Eskeir sighs, “I’m Hitsuji Kuro but I go by the name Eskeir now… I’m sorry… for deceiving you before...” he told him then looks at Ibbie who began to tear up. “Ibbie?”

“Y-You… _hic_ … It was you all along… _hic_ … w-why? Why didn’t you… tell me?” Ibbie asked while crying, she began to cough a bit too making Eskeir panic a bit.

“I-Ibbie… Please don’t cry… I’m sorry… I know I’m wrong to hide it like that but I… I’ve learned my lesson… I’m sorry, Ibbie...” Eskeir told her as he hugs her.

Ibbie continues to sob but hugs back. Comgan was trying to process the new information but smiles when he sees Ibbie and Eskeir. Ten minutes later, Ibbie finally calmed down. Eskeir told Comgan his reason for the disappearance and what he has been doing now.

“I see… So you’ve come here to gain the other’s forgiveness… Would you like me to tell them about it?” Comgan asked.

“I’m not sure... Are you fine with it?” Eskeir asked.

Comgan nodded with a smile, “Thanks to you and the other milletians, I’m able to get the other citizens of Bangor to trust a young Priest like me so it’s my turn to return the favor. The timing is perfect.” he told him.

Eskeir smiles softly, “Thank you...” he said before looking around, “Where can I stay while I’m doing my task here?”

“Oh, you can stay with me. This building behind me is pretty big after all. _***_ ” Comgan told him then pointed at the nearby well near the Pub, “You can leave your horse over there. There should be some space for it.”

“Oh, alright. Thank you.” Eskeir said before walking his horse in that direction.

Ibbie joined Comgan with informing the others about Eskeir’s arrival while Eskeir decided to have his late lunch at Jennifer’s Pub.

~To be continued...

**::.SEVENTH SONG.::**

_We were originally a family of three. It didn’t bother me at first but because of those rumors, I started acting differently that my husband even started hurting him. Odd eyes, unnatural, strange kid… They call him in many different words._

__

_Freak_

_The one word that changed my look to my son. The reason why I named him like a black sheep is because he was like one when he first opened his eyes. I named him like that because he’s different from us… Amber and emerald eyes, my husband’s eyes and my own… It does look unique at one point but…_

_“Your son is strange, Myan… Are his eyes truly like that?”_

_“I know two toned eyes are rare but that really looks so unnatural!”_

_“I don’t want to be rude but… Did something happen while he’s in your tummy?”_

_That last sentence broke me… Because of him… They looked at us differently so we didn’t allow him to go out anymore. My husband and I decided to have another child, a perfect child who we call Hana._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> * - it’s a Belisha support puppet but with different colors~  
> ** - Theo Ikki is actually my OC in another game called Twin Saga, but I also named one of my characters in mabinogi as Theoikki so I decided to add him as an extra character~ xD  
> *** - idk if the building behind Comgan is the church or his house soooo xD
> 
> You won’t believe it! It took me days to get past the dungeon part of the story! Got a bit of story block TwT  
> Also I'm sorry if the updates have been slow :c I'm slowly running out of ideas and I'm also trying to get back to drawing since it have been a month since I last drew--  
> I'm afraid that I might forget how to draw and get rusty- xD


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Most of the chapters will be in the 3rd Person’s POV. I’ll say in advance when there’s a change of POV  
> The name ‘Eskeir’ is only made up and any similar ign in this story is just coincidental.
> 
> Enjoy!!

When Eskeir returns to where Comgan usually stays, the young Priest is already there. He looks around looking for the young girl only to see her chatting with Sion near the Barri Dungeon entrance. Ibbie seems to be talking in excitement while Sion was wearing a frown in his face. When he catches Eskeir’s eyes, he glares and looks away. 

“Done with your meal?” Comgan asked, Eskeir nodded. “I’ve told them about your arrival… Some didn’t believe it but they still wanted to meet you. Prepare yourself though, I’m sure they will ask a lot of questions.”

“Yeah… It won’t probably be different when I was in Tir Chonaill… I’m just hoping that there won't be a Ranald No.2 in here.” Eskeir said, sighing.

Comgan chuckled, “If you need any help, you can ask me.”

Eskeir slowly nodded before looking at Comgan, “...So… Any job you need me to do so you can trust me again?” he asked.

Comgan laughed a bit, “You don’t have to worry about that. My trust in you didn’t really disappear… I’d like you to focus on others… But if you really insist on having a job, I’d ask you to defeat some goblins and imps outside of Bangor.” he replied with a small smirk.

Eskeir sighs with a smile, “I guess I can do that if I’m not doing anything… Who do you suggest for me to go to first?” he asked, looking around while scratching the back of his head.

Comgan hums as he watches as everyone does their daily work but he can see that some were eyeing Eskeir. “If you want to start on the easy one, I think you should go to Sion.”

“Easy one you say? He just glared at me minutes ago.” Eskeir grumbled.

“Ibbie is with him, I’m sure she can help you. After all… _chuckle_ … Sion likes Ibbie.” Comgan said.

Eskeir sighs before nodding. He walks over the two kids and as soon as Sion notices him, he gives him one sharp glare. Eskeir only sweatdropped and faked a cough.

“H-Hey Sion… Can we have a little chat?” Eskeir asked.

Sion crosses his arms, “No.”

“Sion… Please?”

“No.”

Ibbie simply watches as the two talks. She fidgets with the bunny plushie that she has before looking back at the two. Eskeir was scratching his head quietly while looking at Sion who was just looking away with his arms crossed.

“What can I do for you to forgive me?” Eskeir asked, Sion only stayed quiet.

Ibbie looks at Sion and tugs his shirt, making the boy look at her. “..Sion… Can you work this out with him.. For me?” she asked, tilting her head.

_‘C-Cute..!’_ Sion faked a cough before looking back at Eskeir, “I-If Ibbie wants me to then fine! BUT! You should do what I’ll ask you to do!” he told Eskeir, pointing at him at the same time.

Eskeir sighs in relief, “Alright, what do you want me to do?” he asked.

Sion ponders for a bit before grinning, “Get me 20 iron ores in Barri Dungeon. There’s no deadline so take your time to grab them!” he told him.

Eskeir pales a bit, _‘That’s four times more than the usual amount he asks whenever I take a part-time job from him!’_

Sion was still grinning, “So~? Can you do it or not?” he asked.

Eskeir sighs and nodded, “Fine, I’ll do it.”

“I’ll be waiting then!” Sion said, crossing his arms.

Ibbie walks to Eskeir with a smile, Eskeir smiles back at her as he pats her head, gaining a bit of a glare from Sion. He sweatdrops and decides to walk Ibbie towards her father, Bryce. When the man saw them approaching, he gave a warm smile to both Eskeir and Ibbie.

“Hello Eskeir. I’ve heard of your situation from the young priest. You don’t need to worry about my forgiveness… It’s enough to see my daughter smiling again.” Bryce told him while patting Ibbie’s head.

“Oh, thank you...” Eskeir mumbled.

“Hmm… But when it comes to Gilmore and Edern, it’s going to be tough.” Bryce said while looking at Gilmore.

Eskeir glances a bit at Gilmore and freezes when he meets his eyes. Gilmore was looking at him like how the people in Tir Chonaill once looked at him. His eyes were dark and it seems like he’s been mumbling. He can’t hear what he’s actually saying but he knows it’s about him and it isn’t good. Bryce notices Eskeir as he started to become nervous.

“I suggest you to go to Edern and Elen first…” Bryce said, snapping Eskeir from his thoughts.

The young boy just nodded before walking towards the Blacksmith Shop. He sees Edern working on smithing while Elen was just sitting down. She seems to be resting from work and then perks up when she sees Eskeir. She flashes a big grin.

“Oh you’re here! Grandpa, Eskeir’s here!” Elen said, turning around to Edern.

Edern simply huffs, “Hitsuji is?” he asked while hammering the weapon that he’s making, “Just… Give him a job or something. If he’s able… to finish your job then I’ll give him mine. Now that he’s a mortal, he can’t do the usual blacksmithing method that a milletian can usually do.” he told her while focusing on smithing.

“He’s so busy...” Elen mumbled pouting a bit. She looks back at Eskeir with a smile, “My job for you is easy so don’t worry!” she told him, handing him a piece of paper.

Eskeir takes the paper and reads, “Deliver 10 iron ingots?” he asked, Elen nods.

“Do you still remember how to refine ingots? If not, I can teach you.” Elen said. “Here are the iron ores that you can use. It's a lot so in case you fail on some, you can make more.” she said while dragging a sack of iron ores.

Eskeir looks at the nearby furnace, thinking about it. He drags the sack beside the furnace and closes his eyes, trying to remember how he did it when he was still a milletian. Morfydrianas materializes beside him, making herself invisible to others as usual.

Eskeir opens his mouth to speak, “Can I-”

“No.” Morfydrianas immediately said without looking at him.

She already knows that Eskeir is going to ask if he can use his milletian energy for just a bit. Eskeir frowns a bit before walking to Elen to borrow some gloves.

“It would be faster if I use it even for just a short time...” Eskeir mumbles while bringing out some ores from the sack.

Morfydrianas crosses her arms, “Just activating it for a short time is risky. Plus isn’t this a good practice since you’re trying to live as a normal person now?”

Eskeir grumbles, carefully putting the ores inside the furnace. “Well...y-yeah… I wonder how many iron ingots we can make for a day...” he asked, a bit loud that Elen heard him.

“For us, it usually takes around… 10 ingots or more in a day.” Elen replied with a smile.

“O-Oh… I guess I can make 10 today.” Eskeir mumbles, Elen simply giggles.

“But only if we talk about the expert blacksmith like my Grandfather! If it’s you who just became a mortal… hmm… I’d say it’s going to be a bit tough~” Elen told him with a shrug.

Eskeir sighs, “Ah great...”

Elen walks near them and looks inside of the furnace, “Mhmm… Remember that it should maintain its usual form. I won’t accept irregular shaped ingots!” she told him.

“Seriously?” he asked with another sigh.

“That’s right! It should be perfectly made!” Elen said with a grin.

_‘Can’t we just cheat with alchemy?’_ Eskeir asked himself.

Morfydrianas pouts a bit, “If only I can still use it then sure, we can cheat for a bit but sadly… It’s a no.” 

Time has passed and Edern finished with his job. He turns around to see Eskeir still working on a furnace. He also sees Elen chatting with Eskeir with a bit of teasing.

“So close! It’s almost perfect!” Elen exclaimed while examining an almost-perfect looking iron ingot.

Edern notices that Eskeir was sweating so much because of the heat in the area. He sighs and approaches the two with his arms crossed, “Save the next ones for tomorrow, Eskeir. Go rest.” he told him. “You can also redo the irregularly shaped iron ingots tomorrow.”

Elen grins, “Yeah! Ah! Have dinner with us! We’ll be eating at Jennifer’s pub!” she told Eskeir with a bigger grin.

Eskeir wipes his forehead and nods, “I’ll get myself cleaned first...”

Elen nods then Eskeir walks towards Comgan and asks if he can borrow his bathroom to clean himself. 15 minutes later, Eskeir went out of Comgan’s house and headed towards the pub where Elen and Edern were waiting. It looks like the two have ordered a lot of foods on their table.

“Alright, eat up!” Edern told him.

“Isn’t this a lot?” he asked, taking his plate.

Edern chuckles, “It’s alright! You need to eat a lot, I don’t know if you notice it but you’re so thin!” he told him.

Elen laughs a bit, “He doesn’t seem to be that thin though but yeah, you need to eat some meat! Here!” she told Eskeir, pushing a plate of steak towards Eskeir.

Eskeir simply nodded and accepted the extra foods knowing that he won't be able to argue back about this. Elen and Edern just watch him with a smile before eating their own share. As time passes by, the pub gets filled up with people. Some are like them, ordering regular meals while the others are drinking but they aren’t making any kind of trouble.

The next day, Eskeir headed straight to the blacksmith after having his breakfast. He continues his work from yesterday while being watched by Elen who later got scolded by Edern for not working.

_This is so boring~_

Eskeir sighs, _‘Just bear with it...’_

_But I wanna do some action! When are we going to Barri Dungeon?_

_‘After this.’_ Eskeir thought while placing a new batch of iron ores in the furnace.

Morfydrianas materializes behind him and stretches, “I guess I should just do some experiments.”

_‘Don’t do anything that will cause some trouble...’_ Eskeir told her.

She grins as she turns around, “Don’t worry~ Don’t worry~ I just have to see how far away I can get from you. Also, I wanna try if I really can’t use my alchemy… Ever since I became a spirit, I just thought that I can’t use it but the truth is… I really haven’t tried yet.”

Eskeir wipes his sweat on his forehead, _‘...Alright.’_

Morfydrianas flies up and tries going on top of the mountain. When she realized that the distance is good, she flew further. When she reached the area with lots of trolls and kobold bandits, her surroundings slowly turned dark. 

Eskeir felt that Morfydrianas returned to his mind, _‘So where did you go?’_ He was taking a break and drinking a bottle of water at that time.

_The area with trolls and kobold bandits. It’s a new record actually, it’s quite far._

Eskeir simply hums before returning to his work.

Morfydrianas materializes again and says, “I guess I’ll just be doing the experiments up in the mountains~” when Eskeir nodded, she flew up to the mountains again.

“Alright, this place is good! Now… Imagine a Cylinder...” Morfydrianas mumbles as she stares at both of her hands.

Mist started to gather around her hands and a cylinder formed on her right hand. She aims at the dried up tree and closes her eyes.

_‘I can just imagine the skill. I doubt it needs some crystals.’_ she thought.

After taking a deep breath, she slowly opens her eyes and concentrates. She imagines a ball of water forming and feels the cylinder beginning to load up the attack.

_‘Let’s see how strong this water cannon is...’_ Morfydrianas smirked before shooting at the tree.

It hits the tree and destroys it. Morfydrianas stared for a few minutes before approaching the tree and checking if it’s a tough one. She nods before pondering.

_‘The tree’s tough and I was able to destroy it in one hit. I guess, I’m still strong~’_ she told herself, puffing her chest proudly.

_‘Don’t jinx yourself.’_ Eskeir said through their mind while chuckling, _‘I can still hear your boasting.’_

Morfydrianas puffs her cheek, _‘Come on, be proud of your mom for a while!’_

_‘Heh…~’_

Morfydrianas sighs before finding another tree to use as a target. She practiced with a few more water cannons until she got used to it before trying out another skill.

She imagined a blast of strong wind that pushes anything or anyone in front of her. Again, she felt the cylinder being loaded up and it released a strong blast of wind. She continues to practice until Eskeir tells her that he’s done with the iron ores and that he’s going to the dungeon next. Morfydrianas moves herself straight to Eskeir’s mindscape before materializing beside him again.

“Oh you got a pickaxe ready~” Morfydrianas told him.

Eskeir had slumped the pickaxe over his shoulder, “I borrowed it from Elen...” he told her while walking towards the dungeon. “Elen was also able to trick Sion with giving the pass for the hidden mine so there's only a few monsters inside since it’s only one floor.”

“Oooh~ Can you let me handle the fighting? I want to try fighting using alchemy!” Morfydrianas groaned.

Eskeir looks at her with surprise, “You’re actually able to use alchemy?” he asked as he stopped at the altar of the dungeon lobby.

Morfydrianas nods while smirking proudly, “Now I just need to see if I can also use my techniques~” she snickered.

Eskeir drops the pass on the altar and soon it burns up into ashes. Staircase appeared behind the statue of the goddess and he walked down there followed by Morfydrianas who was just floating as usual. She also made herself visible so the monsters could see her. Eskeir allowed Morfydrianas to fight so he just watched in the corner of the room.

Morfydrianas simply used water cannon and wind blast. She’s also cheating since nothing can hurt her. Whenever some of the monsters notices Eskeir, she quickly creates a barrier spike to block the monster’s way and attacks it. After that room, they proceeded on to the next one which is a mine room so Eskeir prepared his borrowed pickaxe and started mining for iron ores.

“So you’re done with Elen’s request?” Morfydrianas asked him.

“Not really...” Eskeir frowns, “Edern said that I can only take his job or task after helping Elen three times… So… Yeah, I still have two works left. Elen also told me to just do it tomorrow and focus on Sion’s request.” he told her.

Morfydrianas chuckled, “Sounds tough~ Do you think she’ll ask you to make more iron ingots?” she asked.

Eskeir places the mined iron ores in a sack before moving to the next mining spot, “Hopefully… But I got a feeling that she’ll ask me to make some armors too…” he replied before continuing to mine.

Morfydrianas hums and waits until Eskeir’s done with the mining. This whole activity lasted for two hours and a half. When they arrived at the boss room, Morfydrianas handled the five Ogres by herself while Eskeir sneaked his way towards the other side of the room to wait.

_‘Alright, Now to try if I can use Fateweaver...’_ Morfydrianas takes a deep breath, concentrating on her energy. _‘Can I even use it without Phantasmal Remnant?’_ she asked herself while staring at the Ogre that was charging towards her.

Morfydrianas extends her right hand to the charging Ogre and focuses on it. The Ogre raises its hammer and hits her but as usual, the attack didn’t hurt her. The Ogre was confused but didn’t stop in attacking. Its hammer only passed through Morfydrianas though.

Morfydrianas places a hand on her chin, thinking “Ow, so I can’t use my techniques? That’s sad… Maybe I really need some Phantasmal Remnants?” she pondered.

Eskeir just sighed, “Can’t we finish this fast?! Or do you want me to just fight them?” he asked her in a yell, gaining the attention of the other four Ogres. “Welp.” he sighs, putting a hand on his sword.

“Nah, just leave them to me! I’ll finish this in a blink!” Morfydrianas told him then uses wind blast on the Ogre in front of her, blasting it away before hitting it with a flame burst. 

She flew towards the other four and quickly built a line of barrier spikes to block their way to Eskeir. She uses shock on one of the Ogres that also electrocuted the other three. 

Eskeir whistles after seeing the move, “And here I thought you can only use water cannon and wind blast.” he chuckled.

“Ha! Don’t underestimate your mom!” Morfydrianas exclaimed before hitting the four Ogres with a strong water cannon. “And dead!!!!” she cheered.

“Good job.” Eskeir said with a smile then the door opened.

Eskeir walks towards the exit and Morfydrianas follows. When Eskeir left, Morfydrianas saw a sign on the back of the statue of the Goddess. 

She did a mischievous cat-like grin before following Eskeir outside, “Son~~ I got a nice tease for Sion when he's starting to get stubborn around you again~” she told him.

What was actually written on the sign behind the statue was…

_I love you, Ibbie._

_-Sion-_

~To be continued...

**::.EIGHT SONG.::**

_Finally his arrival is here… I have practiced a song dedicated only for this young boy. A song that will both guide him and also hurt him. It’s a really marvelous song that I created with the power given to me by the unknown entity._

**_“You came here all alone with no one to hold you close,_ **

**_It was a waste to spend some time to a place where you don’t belong~”_ **

_I hope this song reaches you, my son…_

**_“It was only me who you can trust, follow our dream and save me from the dark._ **

**_Let my black wings lead you far from harm, come now and save me from this place.”_ **

_Let these words deceive you as you take both the right and wrong paths and then… Let your nightmare begin as everyone close to you started to grow doubtful._

**_“Harden your heart and don’t mind the doubtful eyes,_ **

**_It’s okay as everything is going to be fine after this mishap.”_ **

**_Let this melody guide you, my little sheep._ **

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay! finally! I posted the next chapter! hahahaha--  
> (writer's block, please have mercy- don't join art block q-q)


End file.
